Trading One Life for Another
by RockBane
Summary: Revenge against a grandfather's killer alters the course of more then the fate of an unborn child and the avenging grandson. Chaos ripples throughout the Mafia World as a new chance at life stir up a different series of events concerning the fate of the Vongola Famiglia and most importantly, for the Tenth Generation. Contains non-permanent Sex-Changes and OP Characters.


I don't own Kateyo Hit-Man Reborn!

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Congratulations, Kamiya-san, you're pregnant." The doctor tells them. "I hope this comes a good news for the both of you."

"How... how far along?" They ask, feeling both light headed and oh so close to just out right cursing up a storm. _I can't be pregnant you fucking idiot! You have to, oh, I don't know, have sex!_

If not for using their secondary to activate the chemicals to maintain an emotional even kneel, in a biological sense, the current woman was very certain that this clinic would be ruins within minutes. The enchanted bracelet helping them make use of their Sun Flames, also, helping to keep the right genes active, allowing them to be biologically a woman in her mid twenties. A hand moving to hover over their mid section as they do their best to focus on the here and now.

"Ah, it seems you are about four months along." The man tells them. "I know this must be a lot to take in but there are books that can help you prepare."

They pretty much tune out the rest, after all, they weren't even twenty yet! They will be turning eighteen in a month's time! Let alone, desire to be a parent any time soon!

This job had been first and foremost about revenge, a goal they aimed for since that night, when their grandfather... The body flushes with more chemicals to help numb the emotional cocktail which calms their reaching for their primary. Eyes close as the freelance Mafioso tries to wrap their mind around the fact that... this was in fact happening.

Soon enough, they leave, the Cloud Clone keeping in step with them. Once at the apartment, the clone vanishes, a small metal tube drops to the ground. "So... now what?" They muse in the quiet of their current apartment.

In the end, locking the door, they walk for the bedroom and just grab a pillow to curl up around, the excitement of the news leaving them oh so very exhausted and soon, sleep claimed the seemingly twenty something woman.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"So, what did the doctor have to say, Hikari-chan?" Kikyo asks, it's clear the group are all ears for the news. Rukia jabs Kikyo with an elbow while Nana just seems to giggle at whatever it is Mimi is whispering into her ear.

They glance around the table, doing their best not to have their gaze linger upon Nana. _How's Iemitsu?_ They wanted to ask, but they already knew the answer to that. After all, that poison was created just for him.

A slight, satisfied smile on their face. "I am pregnant." They admit and the five sitting at the table with them all squeal while they sip their tea.

It's been two days since their visit to the walk in clinic and while they still don't know what to do with the unexceptional passenger in their body, they knew they will stick around until news of Sawada Iemitsu's death reaches the soon to be a widow, Sawada Nana, and who knows, they might even attend the funeral. They felt nothing about the fact that this civilian woman will mourn her husband of almost a year, after all, it's not like she wouldn't be able to find someone else, given she's young enough to find someone far closer to home along with far more suited to putting family before Family.

_Perhaps, it'll be for the best... She doesn't deserve to be burdened with the title of single mother. It would only interfere with her education plus, if the rumours of him being related to... Better she just be a foot note in Iemitsu's life, of no consequence in the underbelly that is the Italian Mafia._ They muse as they slowly pick through the various questions and answering them with as much truth as they can.

The conversation about their plans for the future circle about for a time but, then, talk drifts to boyfriends/husbands of the others. The women also focus their attention on the two married women of the group as they ask about their own chances of being pregnant.

"I had a minor issue, it's why I missed my time of the month. It's good now and, well, I am certain that it'll be soon!" Nana exclaims and they swallow a bit, but as worry does bloom, their secondary begins to help keep the new state of hormonal under control. _It's not like she can just divine what happened, she doesn't know a thing. After all, why would that one want to spoil the fantasy he's built up surrounding her?_

Then it's Kikyo's turn to fend off the jackals that were at the table. Their phone vibrates and with a press of a button, a message for a meeting is waiting for them to read. Humming, they put the phone back in their pocket, saying, "I'll read it later."

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

_"He's dead."_ Vick the Mist tells them. _"Send me your numbers, I'll deposit your share, minus the expenses of course."_

_"Keep it all, I didn't do it for the money."_ They inform the Mist. _"You got the information?"_

_"Yea, sure, I'll send you the information viva text."_ There's a pause before the other says, _"Are you sure? I mean, that's still plenty of money your passing up, boyo."_

_"Told you I wasn't in it for the money, it was never about the money."_ They state in a harden tone. _"The enchantment will fade once the bracelet is destroyed, right?"_ They ask after a few seconds, wanting to confirmation of that fact.

_"Well, yea, the change back should be faster back given its your birth gender, although, to be honest, never had anyone go for something like that before. Most just wanted layers of illusion, not, well, what you asked for."_ Vick tells them. _"Do I want to know what pissed you off so much to go to that kind of length just to pass yourself off as a chick so thoroughly?"  
_  
_"He was a Sky, Vick. A god damn Sky, even with his kind of disorders, he'd know."_ They state.

_"Yet, you managed to Black Widow him."_ Vick muses after a few seconds. The question of, how clearly hanging between them.

_"See you in a bit, boyo."_ Vick finally says and with that, the call ends.

Gently placing the cell phone upon the table, they move their hand to touch the bump. They are now five months along and it's starting to show. "Took two months before he finally kicked the bucket, huh?"

"Now... what should I do about you?" They wonder out loud, it kind of amazes them that his flames haven't, well, done anything about the passenger. After all, their secondary is Sun and Sun Flames, well, the growing babe should have been...

Yea, they didn't want to think about it, yet, the evidence is clear that their Sun Flames hadn't... "There's so many reasons why, even discounting you inheriting **that** from _him_." They tell the developing child, no, they hadn't gone back to a doctor as of yet, so they don't known the gender of their passenger.

_Well, I guess all I can do is study up on it. Its not like there's anything else I have to do any time soon._ They muse. They've use of Sun Flames to keep their health up along with managing the slew of hormones that no man should have flowing in their system.

Their hand moves and begins rubbing the bracelet upon their wrist. Such a simple bit of jewellery. With just a yank and...

They move their hand from the item and do their best to gather their thoughts. "One day at a time, one item at a time." They remind themselves. For now, they can relax and feel satisfaction that their Grandfather's murder was gone from this life. Yes, their family will likely be aghast at how he did it, but then, they were safe by the way they did it. Ever since flames of purple with bright tint of yellow and specks of... well, it hadn't mattered then and still don't, for in the Mafia World, your primary is what makes you a Flame User and if you had another color or more, then you weren't as strong as someone who's only got the one color.

_Your Will was too divided, thus, your strength was too divided._ They recall being the unofficial view point. Personally, they hadn't cared about the opinions of criminals, after all, they saw Flames more as weapons and categories to slot people into. _Or is it more like a Caste system? Suns are Healers or Lightnings are tanks._ They muse. Then there's their obsession with the First Generation of Vongola...

_"Enough, you have stuff to do then sit around musing over the stupidity of modern day bandits and assassins. We have the conformation it exits, thus it shouldn't be hard to relocate there before..."_ They trail off as they gaze upon their baby bump.

"Happy Birthday to me." They muse upon checking the calendar, oh, sure, their date of birth had been last week, but still... "Better late then never."

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"We're going to miss you two." The mix group of civilians keep their clone and themselves encircled as they say their good byes. Although they've only been part of these women's lives for such a short time, it's clear they will miss them.

_Or they, perhaps, are grieving the chance to see a new born babe?_ They muse as they are allowed to get onto the train. The widow of Sawada Iemitsu, Nana, is here as well, saying her own good byes.

It's simple matter of ignoring the few Watchers, after all, it's no 'her' they are there for. Oh no, people will be monitoring Nana for at least two reasons, one to see if she had been the cause of her husband's death and the second, to see if there isn't a legacy waiting to be born. Given that Nana was very much innocent of _knowingly_ being the reason her husband died... Well, the only one who knows that secret in Japan is themselves, so, Nana is safe from that punishment.

As for the second, well, that isn't in Nana's possession, hasn't been for six months now. Nor do they have reason suspect that there was one, but, well, one never knows with Flames. Or perhaps, Iemitsu left a donation at the local sperm bank for his wife if anything ever happened to him...

Ah, well, what happens in regards to Nana is not their problem, hasn't been since she married the bastard. It's a kindness on their part to keep her ignorant of just who she had married or how she had been used. _Life goes on, doesn't it?_ They muse once they are on the train and rubbing their pregnant belly.

_I wonder, when you learn about this, what will your reactions be? Will you think I a monster? A kidnapper? Will you seek her out? Seek your inheritance that he might have left for you?_ They wonder as they lean on their clone's shoulder while leaving a hand upon their belly.

"Or will I chicken out at the last possible moment? And tell you a bold face lie?" They murmur as they control their breathing. The babe waiting to be born doesn't do much, not even kick in reply.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

Sun Flames were busy keeping their Cloud Flames effects in check then pump the needed hormones to help dull the pain. Letting loose a scream as the doctor asks them to push, hands are clinched about the bars, the enchanted bracelet clicking upon the metal. Reminding them that they can't strangle the doctor's throat or snap the man's neck as they need him to get this baby out of them!

"I am never doing this again! Never fucking ever!" They roar while the nurse seems to roll her eyes at the declaration and if they weren't needed to remain upon this bed, they might have given into the impulse to beat the ever living shit out of that woman.

With that floor gate open, they curse up a storm and when it's over, they whimper softly as the phantom pains still linger, yet, warm begins to flow from within and soon enough, their Sun Flames are smoothing out the lingering damage. The sudden cry of a babe causes them to open their eyes and focus upon the approaching bundle. _Mine! Mine! My Son!_ _MINE!_ Circles through their altered mind.

"Healthy baby boy!" The boy is offered to them and they can't help but coo at the babe. "Hello there..." They say as they take the offered bundled.

Slowly, the boy calms in their arms. _My little Tsunayoshi... Eh... where the... Oh fuck no! I am sure as hell not naming him THAT!_ "Hey there... Takato." _Eh, why not, it's not like I really put much though into names before, after all, it's not like it can't be changed at a later date._

The babe stirs and hazel eyes with specks of two shades of orange stare at them, they just coo and the specks fade from the eyes. The eyes blink and for a few seconds, the baby boy takes in their features before whimpering a bit while slowly falling asleep. Soon enough, they grew tired as well, along with hungry but, for right now, they just want to snuggle with their son and rest.

Even though they were tired, they couldn't help but feel off balance. Like something is missing, then again, there's a tiny life resting in their arms and they feel their Flames moving through their body. After some minutes, Takato is taken from them for examinations, it also means that changes happen within the room. At some point, they nap for a bit, not overly deeply and their thoughts slightly scattered, yet the circling upon what happened in the last eight hours, since their water broke.

Soon, they are given something to drink and food brought. Little Takato is returned to her arms, perfectly healthy. Complements about him taking it like a good little soldier and given to themselves for how things went. It's enough for them to roll their eyes upon hearing.

For now, it's time to recover but, well, they've been Kamiya Hikari long enough, it's time to reclaim their true gender, talk with one of the locals with Mist Flames, and moving from the apartment to the house they bought under their future identity.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"Hey dad? What was my mom like?" Takato asks him as they snuggle upon the couch, today is Takato's fifth birthday.

He sighs softly and looks at the photo resting upon the wall of him when he had been Kamiya Hikari. Then groans softly, how could he not, when he remembers the train ride that carried the then her, from Kyoto that lead them to moving to Namimori. "Would you like a sweet lie or a bitter truth?" He asks after a few minutes of, surprisingly, patient silence.

The twenty-three year old man going by Uyehara Kenji couldn't bring himself to look at his son's face. His hair sports the same shade of brown as one Udo Nana, formerly Sawada Nana, only with crimson highlights being found in the bangs with eyes being violet purple in color. He's become the go to doctor for Namimori's Flame Users even though he's still studying to get his medical license let alone practice legally. Which, is fairly bizarre given his primary Flame being Cloud and that's common knowledge among those in the know.

"How... bitter?" His son asks in a surprisingly mature tone. He feels his son move slightly, feeling the way the couch responses to know that Takato is sitting up now.

"Very bitter and likely to stick in the throat." He admits softly with his eyes closed. He's done his best to tell his son no lies, even doing his best to avoid the acceptable white lies people use without a second thought.

_Well, it's really up to him. Does he want the truth? Or will he go for the lie?_ He wonders to himself as the silence stretches.

"It's... that bad?" Takato asks and he just remain silent. "I... You've never... So..." Again, it's oddly mature, so very mature response from a recently turned five year old.

"Why let me decide?" There's a hint of helplessness coloring Takato's tone now. He finally looks at his son and isn't, couldn't, be surprised by the orange burning in his son's eyes. Worry showing cleanly along with tears threatening to spill down the five year old's face.

"Because... The truth, the truth is one that can harm what we have." He admits. "I want to lie, so badly, right now but, if I start, I'm not sure I can stop." _Lying to you.  
_  
"That's... You really mean that, don't you?" Takato asks and he merely nods. His son gets to his feet and pauses, looking, well, lost, at what to do next.

"I'm... going to the park, ok?" Takato asks and heads for the door after sensing that he's not going to stop him. Soon enough, he gets up and heads for his room to grab the whiskey he has in his safe in his closet.

_Huh, I never thought it would hurt this much._ The man answering to Kenji admits as he heads for the kitchen to prepare himself a drink. It's seven pm now but only an idiot will try something in Namimori, after all, he's not the only Cloud living in the town, just the only one who's Active.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Baby Carnivore." Blinking, Takato looks up to find himself in the company of one Hibari Kyoya. "It is late." The older boy informs him with emotionless eyes.

"Oh, yea..." He mutters as he glances around from his seat upon a swing. "Hey, maybe... What would you rather have? A bitter truth or a sweet lie?"

Kyoya's eyes harden slightly and he adds, "My dad asked me that, he's never lied to me so... He kind of asked me if I want him to lie or..."

The other's eyes flicker about as he waits, not really sure why he asked the other the question, not really. It's not like Kyoya likes hanging around with people, or crowding, as the other calls it. "Truth. A carnivore should never let themselves be deceived by herbivores." _Which are what lies are._ The other states simply and, for some reason, that makes sense that the other would prefer that.

"Ok, thank you, Hibari-senpai for answering the question." He says once he gets to his feet and down respectfully to the other, sensing that the other would like the gesture. With that, he starts heading home, feeling Kyoya's eyes upon his back as he does so.

_But the truth, it's going to hurt no just me, but my dad._ Takato reasons. He's not sure if he could stand that, then again, could he really swallow the lie when he knows it's going to be one? Would the lie even do anything? When it's already been identified?

As he gets to the door, his hand goes to the key around his neck as he slows his pace to a crawl as he walks towards the front door. On some level, he knows he can't avoid this discussion, that this is one he NEEDS to have, yet, most of him just doesn't want to hurt his dad, that, this could be an end of what they had. _Maybe I should have waited to ask?_

Yet, he feels that, today had been the RIGHT day to ask. So, he asked it and now, now he's dealing with the fallout of that seemingly simple question. Straightening up, he takes the key and unlocks the door, entering the house, he finds his dad sitting at the table.

Once he's switched out his footwear, he calls out a greeting and his dad returns it. Once his jacket is hanging up and the key in the bowl next to the door, he approaches the table. There's a strange bottle on the counter and the glass before his dad sports a lot of ice plus the drink's color is similar to the liquid from the bottle. It's an English label too, plus there's rises on the bottle, some kind of crest?

"Still want to know?" His dad asks and, after a few seconds, he nods. "I want to know why she left."

Here, his dad chuckles and keeps at it for a few minutes. As his dad recovers, he pulls out a chair and he takes it. "She never ran off, in fact, the one who gave birth to you never left." It troubles him that, that's the truth.

He gives his dad a look of sheer disbelief. "I gave birth to you. I paid someone to make me an enchanted bracelet that would allow me to use my Sun Flames to alter not just my age but my gender." He files away the mention of these Flames along with the fact that magic, it had to be magic, exists. "About two weeks after you were born, I destroyed the bracelet and then had to run interference cause it hurt like a bitch with the release of the enchantment. Thankfully, Cloud Flames help keep the pace steady instead of pulsing or even surges."

_True, that's, wow, but then..._ "Ah, so... are you really my mom or my dad?" His dad winces and something tells him that this... this was something he needs to be VERY care with.

"In terms of blood... We aren't related." He stiffens, cause, well, that's... "What?"

"Genetically speaking, your Udo Nana and her late husband's kid." _That's the truth._ "You see, well, I'm... not sure how it happened either, only, well, you kind of ending up inside of me when I did something that would cause your genetic mom's husband to die." _His dad... killed someone? Why?_

"He killed my granddad." His parent answers and he flushes, it seems he said that one out loud, although... Still, it's the truth and, well, that's a lot of death, at least, he thought it was.

"Why would he kill your granddad?" He asks. "Was it, an accident, that cause him to killed your granddad?"

His parent picks up the glass and downs it in one gulp. Coughing a little and rubs the bridge of his nose. "No, it wasn't." Silence hangs between them and while he wants to spill denials about that, he knows, just knows, that this was true. That, his biological father killed an old man because he wanted to.

"My granddad, he woke his Flames very late in life." It takes some time for his parent to continue. "Granddad, he Activated Sun Flames, managed to save his, then, current wife from dying from a heart attack. Would go on to be the folk healer for the next four years." Wistful smile and he flushes with guilt over what his genetic father had done to his parent's grandfather.

"Ten years ago, my granddad was given a note to meet with someone at the docks. Being a teen and wanting to make sure he makes it there and back safely, I followed after." His parent, he'd been thirteen years old.

"Sawada Iemitsu was the name he gave to my granddad. I couldn't hear the conversation clearly, what second hand information I gathered later pretty much summed up that Iemitsu wanted my granddad to accept the roll of informant/messenger." He watches as the hand on the table begins to engulf in a purple flame with strong hints of yellow plus sparks of another color. "He refused and Iemitsu snapped the neck of an elderly man, letting the body fall into the ocean." The fingers crave grooves in the METAL table top.

"I... watched the man walk away, it took a few minute to realize what had happened before I dived in to retrieve his body." The flames slowly simmer down before returning into his dad's body. "It was a few weeks later did I find out that I Activated my own Flames."

His dad looks at him and he reaches forward, touching his dad. "Granddad, he had been some study as a biologist, so he had left notes about things, mostly it had been on using Sun Flames on different things within the body plus various thoughts of this could mean on a genetic level. If he could heal the whole body to heal itself, why not focus on that healing on a genetic level? Could that not mean, dare he though, a way to fight aging? Of granting man a life that could last centuries?"

"You... want to find out." He says softly and his dad smiles a bit. "Yea, yea I do. So far, yea, but it'll be years before I can say if he was right. It's too soon to tell, let alone the fact that I'm primarily a Cloud Flame User which means the nature of my Cloud Flames can be a mixed bag."

"I started hunting for information once I could heal myself and was in for a shock to learn just how frightened Mafiosi were of a pissed off Cloud." His dad chuckles. "In between them begging me not to kill them, they pretty much offered anything else, anyone else."

"A almost fourteen year old goes into a bar filled with harden criminals and they were the ones shitting themselves at the sight of a kid with flashing purple eyes and mere glares!" He giggles while his dad chuckles, cause, for some reason, it's not his dad he's picturing, but fourteen year old Kyoya and a bar filled with armed Yakuza with knives at the ready. "That's when I learn the name Vongola, which lead to stories about the so call first Flame Users." His dad rolls his eyes and he frowns.

"Why call them so called?" He asks, cause, that's kind of boarder line truth yet, not really a lie. "Cause, if Flames have been with humans since always, then it stands to reason people of old had their own traditions when it came to them. What they likely meant was that Vongola was the source of the current Flame User culture of modern day instead of all times but, well, for now, people with Active Flames are pretty much herded into the criminal underbelly of humanity and act like it's the only way to live is to be a criminal."

"But your... Namimori..." He trails off and his dad explains, "Is considered a retirement community and is supposedly under the protection of Vongola _Famiglia_, Family."

"So, for a good two years, I did my best to study information concerning your genetic father and, well, I'm not sure why they ever let him be in charge of the _Consulenza Esterna Della Famiglia_, which translates as External Advisors of the Family or CEDEF for short." He pulls himself closer to his dad and his dad puts an arm around him.

"I've cheated when it came to my education, I mostly used my Cloud and Sun Flames to speed up my learning and memory capabilities, read as many physiological books I could get my hands on, trying to figure out just what kind of man Iemitsu was and, well, it wasn't a pretty one. I can only guess people just wrote off so much of his behaviour simply because he was a Sky Flame User, hence, royalty and someone everyone wanted to impress, to get close too."

"Your a Sky, Takato. People talk about how meek Sky are, yet, in the same breath, talk about how dangerous they are. It's a paradox, one that, well, they've become blind to, I think." He stills, cause this fact, that he's a Sky, that's IMPORTANT and something he NEEDS to CONTROL. That being KNOWN as a Sky will bring TROUBLE and WORST on not just him, but to the people LIVING in Namimori. "Sky Flames are to promote Harmony. Funny little fact, everyone talks about finding their Sky, that it's their natural home, yet, there are plenty of stories of Sky Users inflicting unwanted Bonds on other Flame Users."

"Your genetic father, from what I've been able to gather, never formed a natural connection with any other Flame User. Not that it didn't stop people from trying." His dad's eyes glares at the table. "They talk about Flame Rejection and everyone seem to identify it just fine in regards to other Flames yet it might be a blind spot when it comes to Sky Users. That Iemitsu had been the most recent case? Either way, everyone seems to believe that a Sky is always seeking their... Elements." His dad shakes his head. "Him, I wouldn't be surprise if his 'tune' was impossible for normal and stable Elements to reach nor did he want to trouble himself with settling for a different 'pitch' or giving them the basics of the 'song' so they can try to match expectation."

"Really, music puns?" He asks and his dad looks bemused, remarking, "Harmony is what one gets in music. It's about taking a mix mash of pitches and sounds, trying to get the players and or singers to cooperate to a certain, common sound."

"Are... we getting off topic?" He wonders and his dad blinks a bit, clearly thinking over the discussion. Not that, he wants to get back on track but, well, he still wants to know how his dad ended up giving birth to him or why he didn't, well, abort him. Although, some of what his dad mentioned in regards to Sky Flames and interaction with other Flames, that, kind of seemed like there's a truth there. Not the whole truth but then, it FEELS like other Sky Users also don't know the truth of the matter either. So, he'll just have to figure out **his** Harmony later, for now, it's about his dad and how he also qualifies as his mom.

"Ok, so, where was I... let's see, I mentioned fourteen year old me and the CEDEF." Then his dad nods to himself. "Well, I was seventeen when I decided I knew enough about the man and it was time to avenge my granddad, so, I started on a rough sketch of a plan. Then, realized I needed to involve other things to pull it off. A number of doors open when I mention wanting to kill the boss of the CEDEF and I was looking for a Mist, any Mist would do, just as long as their Flame was Useful."

"Found two, although the more important one, he was fairly good and an old hand at enchantments. He's done similar bracelets like what I've wanted plenty of times before, although, more for women looking for new looks or hiding their age then what I asked for, yet, he created it." His dad admits. "He did raise a bit of an eyebrow at the biological portion but, well, he did it and even created the IDs needed."

"The other was just to crafting something that could store my Flames along with minor puppetry control. It was fairly cheap kind of product, but I managed to make it last longer then the one use." His dad adds. "Needed it around, what I was planning, well, a single woman? That's suspicious and could cause alarm bells to chime, but a couple? That requires a certain amount of trust and for the time length? It could fall apart."

"I created the poison gland myself. It wasn't hard to get a bit of skin or blood from him, didn't try for a strand of hair, didn't need it. Although, I will say this, far to many Mists take their quos from popular movies, so counters tend to try and neutralize the hair first with sperm being the second favourite, and blood being the general end of the spectrum." He just stares at his dad, not, really knowing what his dad means or was talking about when it came to using any of that in anyway.

"So, I had the gland prepared and then, I put on the bracelet, activating it before getting on the plane. Of course, it wasn't as instantaneous as I though, oh, by the end of the second week, I had the general look and appeared the right age, but the other parts, those took longer to develop, but that's fine. It was the slow approach anyway, I could wait the two months and some weeks for the gender shift to finish. And that's when I learn he was married." His dad shakes his head.

"I was more then ready to pounce on him but, well, I got a better idea. After all, he was a Sky and that tended to mean they can pick up on intentions of the people around them." And here, was something that was IMPORTANT to learn so he can AVOID it. "I swear, when I decided to transfer the poison gland into Nana, I didn't know she was pregnant, then again, I don't think she knew she was either."

"I transferred the gland from my uterus into Nana's own. After all, it wasn't going to kill her, just her husband." His dad states. "And then, for two months, I thought I was suffering some kind of after effects of the whole gender swap, only, when I finally caved and went to the doctor's, I learnt I was pregnant with you, four months along at that."

"I... I... Fuck, I was seventeen going on eighteen, I hadn't even... Then, I realized where you came from and then, it was like, why the hell haven't my Flames..." His dad closes his eyes and he places moves his head down a bit, cause, yea, he may be learning about this Mystical Flames tonight but even he could kind of imagine that, they were only meant to not hurt their own User. "Funny thing, it was the whole maintaining the gender of a woman that is what helped keep you from..."

"Iemitsu died three months after the transfer and the doctors thought that the gland had been some kind of benign tumour, that's why she hadn't had her monthly." His dad gently squeezed his shoulders. "And I... I decided that there was no returning you. Not just because of the questions but also because, they'd be checking in with her for Sawada's legacy. After all, with Flames, what isn't possible?"

"Your my dad." He reassure his dad. "Blood or not." He decides.

"Even if I pretty much kidnapped you? Killed your genetic father? Keeping you from your last surviving blood relative?" His dad asks and he sits a bit up while glancing into his dad's eyes.

"Yes. You did want you thought was best and, you owned up to it, in the end." He tells his dad, not caring about what came out, just that they were ones that would help patch his dad up.

Something relaxes in his dad, as though, some weight lifted and, maybe, something had. Then he yawns and cuddles in his dad's side. "Bed time."

"'k' He murmurs and his dad soon is carrying him off to his room, putting on his bed before taking the covers and covering him up. "Love you" He yawns.

"Love you too."

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"Hey, dad?" His dad glances up from his desk, eyes focus on him. "Yes?"

"How long until I have a younger sibling?" He asks curious, he's six and, well, he's kind of aware that, well, they need a third person in the house. His dad looks kind of startled, then again, he guesses that this was kind of sudden, but, well, he wants one and, well, from what he's figured out, it was the parents' job to add younger siblings to the family.

"You are aware I'm not dating anyone in a serious manner yet, right?" His dad asks and his brows furl, not... really seeing how that's related, yet, for some reason, it IS. Nodding his head to show he understands.

"Well, you see, I'm not going through _that_ again, so, I need to find a woman interested in having a long term commitment along with wanting to have my kid." His dad explains and he can tell that his dad isn't MOVING from that POSITION in this regard.

"And if I find a woman like that today?" He asks curiously and his dad just gives him a bemused look. "Many factors determine that out come, even if I did use my Sun Flames to ensure it would happen the first time, it would be, could be ten months before a babe to be born, though it would likely be more like eleven."

"That long?!" He couldn't help exclaim, cause, he wanted one NOW! "But I want one now!" _And you are to make it happen._ Was implied.

"I'm sorry to say but, even if I go out to sigh up for adoption to adopt a kid... Let's say I'd have a better chance seducing a random woman into that first opinion then getting a kid from the adoption agency. See, they got this thing about single parents, particularly if said parent is male." That's just... Yet, true, which just...

"You recall what I told you over a year ago, right?" That perks him up and as his mind reviews the information, nodding to show that yea, he gets what his dad means. "Which makes means?"

"Oh, ok then." He walks out of his dad's office, now he just needs to figure out, how does he get Jun to come live with them?

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

_Why do I have the sudden urge to get him a puppy?_ He wonders as he watches his six year old son walk out of his office. "Why the sudden interest?" He wonders to himself, after all, this was fairly sudden as to his knowledge, Takato hasn't been interested in being a big brother.

"Well... He's... been spending a lot of time with that Hibari kid." One Yamamoto Tsuyoshi remarks before adding, "Your son's Active?"

"Since his fifth Birthday." He admits. "Takashi?"

"Latent." Tsuyoshi replies. "No sign of Creep."

He groans and rubs the bridge of his nose at the reminder of the Sasagawa child. "At least Hibari Kyoya is more likely to Activate all at once then Creep." He admits.

"Has Takashi brought the matter of a younger sibling up recently?" He thinks to ask as he settles his chin upon the palm of his hand. Yea, they had been discussing the increase of Yakuza in the town, but, well, they could use a break beyond talking in circles over the issue of whether or not it's the problem of the retirees if the supposed owners haven't slapped the local Yakuza for their criminal activity.

"Hmm, not that I'm aware, but if Takato has... Well, they are kids." And kids do come up with the darndest things.

"Think he'd settle for a puppy?" He muses and Tsuyoshi gives him a bemused look. _A Cloud, you?_

He rolls his eyes, its not his problem that everyone expects him to be a more settled version of Kyoya. Then again, what little stories circulate concerning the Cloud Arcobaleno, one would think that a Cloud User could be somewhere between the two, plus, his secondary is Sun. One of the more socially incline Flame types, if one goes by the common Mafia Flame stereotypes. His 'Territory' wasn't this town nor did he really care that Kyoya was 'biting' people to death.

If such a thing actually exists or even ultimately matter, then his 'Territory' would be managing his Grandfather's Study of Flames, of continuing what his Grandfather started, to prove or disprove his Grandfather's speculations. Being the go to doctor for the town's Flame Users give him plenty to work with along with favours gathered. _Which... Might be a good enough reason to get a puppy.  
_  
"At that age? Likely." Tsuyoshi finally replies after it's clear he's more then patient the is typical of a Cloud. "Though, if Takashi bugs me for one, I'll know who to started it."

He snorts, replying, "Might help with his energy, he's the same as you? I recall your wife isn't Active."

"I'm fairly certain he's a Rain, haven't seen any evidence of a secondary." Which, isn't saying much given the only way to check is for him to go Active. "How is the little Sun?"

"Sasagawa Ryohei is Active and I've arranged for a few member for help given his hyperactive nature." He pauses before admitting, "He almost when into a state of Hyper."

Tsuyoshi whistles on hearing that, it was a state that would have made the boy fixated on a Goal like dog with their favourite bone. Never mind that Hyper with any other Flame would kill the User, yet, given the nature of Activation, the Flames would just feed the cycle by healing the damage that the state has the User in given that Sun Flame Users have an almost instinctive ability to heal themselves. "I think Davis and Kiv are going to try and channel Ryohei into a career of teaching gym or even becoming a coach of a sport."

"What was he starting to set as a Goal?" Tsuyoshi asks and he replies, "Creating a boxing club at school."

"Wow, I would have... I mean, he's got a little sister, right?" He sighs but nods.

"I would have thought bodyguard." Tsuyoshi muses and he snorts, replying, "She made it clear her thoughts were concerning fighting. At least he was trying for something structured and without a weapon."

Tsuyoshi shudders, likely imagining what a Hyper Sun User would be light with a weapon of any sort. Most Sun Users default to their fists simply because it's cheap, which makes a certain Sun Arcobaleno a bit of anomaly in regards to how a Sun fought. _Or the fact that nobody's ever mentioned Reborn using Sun Flames to heal others._

"Do you have any plans set up concerning Takashi?" He asks and Tsuyoshi gives him a cold stare, no that it bothers him much. After all, unlike the others, he knows there's a Sky in residence and if it's true that Sky do seek out bonds as naturally as they breath, then Takato's very presence is going to be draw kids into Activating. He knows what happened with Ryohei wasn't fully due to Takato, oh no, blame is more on those bullying teens and Ryohei's need to be proactive in regards to threats.

"We're doing our best to make sure he won't." Tsuyoshi states in an icy tone. "There's no need for him to become a free lance hit-man."

_I hate how intertwined Flames are with crime. Then again, most believe I'm older then I look and have far bloodier hands then them._ Oh, the irony, he's only got one kill to his name, not that they'd believe that to be true. He's a Cloud, thus when he Activated, he must have killed the people that pushed him to Activate. Never mind that with a Sun as a secondary, there's a fairly good chance of him Activating under for different reasons, not that it actually happened, after all, he did Activate due to his desire to avenge his Grandfather. Still, he didn't kill anyone when he had Activated.

"There's a chance he could Activate in his twenties." He remarks to Tsuyoshi. "No everyone Activates in their preteens or teens. It's just more expected for it to happen given the rush of hormones and the typical teen mind set of being immortal."

"Then there's the Yakuza to think about, they're growing bold." He recalls. He's been trying to talk the others into taking subtle action to curb the criminal group but they just kept to their stance that this is a retirement community, that this was neutral ground, that it was the so-called owners of the town, the famous Vongola Famiglia, that they have a duty to keep Namimori free from such things. "There's only one Hibari Kyoya and he's got school most days."

Tsuyoshi scowls and he rolls his eyes. "Do any of you really want me to rampage? To, what, Hulk Smash them out of Namimori? That won't stop them, oh no, then there's a trophy, fame, and a shiny title to be found in Namimori." He remarks. "Just tour their known hang out, infuse an item near there with some Rain Flames, to mellow them out. To calm them, that's all I'm asking. If things grow boring, they more hot headed number will look else where."

"I've asked people to do minor things, nothing overt yet, you guys just keep saying it's the mythical Vongola Family's duty, that you are retired." He says. "I've asked to talk with whoever is the representative of that Family, yet, nobody seems to know nor have I been approached to inform me that this Famiglia, who's home is all the way in Italy, should automatically know of the situation here and are doing something about it."

"Just because their famous founder retired here, doesn't mean that it's high on their list of priorities or have you not hear about the fourth son's action? They're calling it the Cradle Affair and it sounds like they're still trying to sweep the rubble up." He leans back and watches Tsuyoshi, for, it kind of sounds like this was very much news to the restaurant owner.

"You... still have contacts?" Tsuyoshi asks and he sighs, replying, "I do pay Viper's rate for year old common news and informative yet boring gossip. Given I live in Japan, I frankly don't need to be up to date about every thing that's hitting the gossip rounds nor what's considered 'news'." Money... wasn't a problem, hasn't been for a very long time.

_Got to love royalties._ He muses with a hint of a smirk. He smoothes his expression as the Rain User seems to curl a bit into himself, it seems that someone might actually _see_ that Namimori's retirees were pretty much on their own when it comes to dealing with the enforcement of neutral ground. _How the hell did they get to be so __passive__, yet still have the __**Will**__ to use their Flames?_

_Maybe it's the local culture?_ The Cloud User muses. Whatever it is, it's beginning to piss the fuck off of him, after all, it's not like he's asking them to form their own task force to deal with these ass holes, just use their Flames to pacify the aggression while redirecting it outside of Namimori.

"I'll... talk with the others about this." Tsuyoshi promises him. "You know, there's this old rumour about you." The other muses after silence hanging between them for some minutes, the Rain's eyes look. _Huh, counterattack? Going to try and injury me?_

"Oh, you mean that I arrived pregnant? That's true." _And that look makes that confirmation worth it._ "Yea, I gave birth to Takato. Ended up pregnant from my last hit." Titling his head every so slightly, he asks, "Why? Got a problem with that?"

"But..." Tsuyoshi's eyes flicker about his body before swallow slightly in fright from his reaction. He smirks at the man, very bemused by the response.

"I paid for an enchanted bracelet that worked with my Sun Flames to become a woman. I... got close to someone and, well, Takato's the result of my use of Sun Flames." All so very true.

"His... sperm donor?" Tsuyoshi asks, surprising him a little for pressing into this particular manner. "I killed him."

"Figured as a woman I could get closer to him then as a man." He tells the restaurant owner. "I won't lie, I had mix feelings when I found out I was pregnant. And yes, I was very much aware that I didn't have to continue with the pregnancy."

"So..." Here the Rain User tries to cross his legs and wince at the thought of a man going through THAT. "No drugs or Sun Flames to help with the pain during it."

Tsuyoshi chokes a bit before looking everywhere but at him. "I'm not ashamed of it, I just don't go around airing that little fact. It's private information that I hope won't go further then your wife." Cause, she'll more then likely to notice that something is bothering her husband over the next few days until the news stops being oh so fresh in his mind.

"Right. Of course." Then, the other gets up and says some quick good byes along with a polite bow, fleeing from his office and the building he owns.

With a snort, he gets up a few minutes after the fleeing of the Rain User and heads for where the computer is kept, might as well start looking for that puppy he decided to get. Maybe it'll keep Takato from follow through with whatever childish plan he's devised concerning getting a younger sibling.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Baby Carnivore." Kyoya-senpai greets him as he's trying to buy a ticket at the train station. "It is against the rules for young to leave Namimori without an adult."

"But I want to fetch my younger sibling." He tells the Latent Cloud, he had asked about why Kyoya-senpai kind of felt like his dad once and learnt that it's due to them both having Cloud Flames. "We need a third in our house."

Kyoya-senpai works that through his head before repeating himself, "Against the rules." Then adds, after a few minutes, "If it was important, your father Carnivore would have retrieved this sibling long ago."

He kind of chews on his lower lip, cause, well, that's true. After all, Jun is Nana and Hoshi's daughter. _And Nana doesn't know exist by way of Iemitsu._

"But I want a younger sibling." He kind of whines slightly. His senpai looks wholly unimpressed by the tone and he sighs.

"Haven't you wanted a younger sibling, senpai? Someone to look after?" He asks, looking into Kyoya-senpai's eyes.

"I have Namimori to look after." The other states in a matter of fact way. "You are part of Namimori, Baby Carnivore." _You are in my care._

"Oh." Then nods, then he frowns in thought as his gaze wanders a bit, cause, there's something kind of important that he likely should ask. It had to do with being a Sky User.

"Are you saying your **my** _Guardian_?" He asks, again, looking the other in the eye. Cause, it sounds like Kyoya-senpai pretty much said so, only, it's best to get that confirmed.

At this Kyoya-senpai pauses as there's a hint of emotion swirling there. It's clear that, some part of his senpai knows that this is IMPORTANT. So, they kind of stand there, each waiting.

Lips press, the older boy firms up his sudden surge of emotions. "You are **mine** to protect." And there's this... the slight widening of Kyoya-senpai's eyes show that, even though he's Latent, he feels something solidify and settle between them.

Tears or joy and happiness threaten and the urge to take a step forward, to hug the other, is so strong. So, he just smiles and Kyoya-senpai's gaze softens a tad. Then, they both start walking away, Takato's not feeling as lonely as before, not as empty.

He heads home, to tell his dad that he's got a Guardian! He's got a Cloud Guardian! He's got an older brother now!

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

His son calls out a greeting upon entering the house, which he returns. He has a listing of places to check in the search for a puppy. It's not something to rush into, after all, it's not just the welfare of the puppy but also talking to Takato about the responsibilities of pet ownership.

"Dad, guess what?" His son says after rushing over to give him a hug. He ruffles his son's fluffy brown hair before the boy pulls away.

"What?" Then gets hit by a look that demands that he at least try to guess this news his son has. "You found out how much trouble a baby is?" Yea, it's off the mark but, well, there's nothing saying he had to try to guess accurately.

"No... they are? But, they just seem to sleep! How does that make them hard to take care of?" His son asks, clear amazement shining in his eyes.

"They need their diapers changed cause they can't use the bathroom, so it has to go into the diaper. Then there's them fussing when hungry or in discomfort, particularly when they are teething. Want me to continue?" He asks at the slight look of dawning horror in his son's gaze.

"No! Just, no." Then Takato looks like he was about to say something but stops himself, chewing a bit on his lower lip. "Yes, you were like that as a baby, everyone is like that as a baby." He confirms the unspoken curiosity.

"Even you?" His son asks and he nods. "I'm no exception. Nobody that I know of just appeared fully grown out of nowhere."

"Oh." His son then looks at the rice steamer. "Supper almost ready?"

He hums as he returns to the curry he's making. "Hey, dad?" He hums in acknowledgement. "I talked with Kyoya-senpai and he said I was his to protect! And then, then I felt something shift between us and I think he's my Cloud Guardian!"

"Well, I guess I shouldn't be overly surprised... He didn't suddenly go Activate did he?" He asks, taking a moment to see if his son got into a fight.

"Ah, no, but he felt it settle though." His son says and he hums thoughtfully. _So, Sky Users can Bond with Latent Flame Users? Well, that's not something I've heard make the rounds before._

"So, should I expect an increase of visits from the young Hibari-kun in the future?" He asks and his son shrugs. "Don't know. We kind of parted right after it settled."

_So... who's going to be visiting in the near future?_ He wonders as he shoos his son off to get ready for supper.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Dragon. Something happened." He couldn't get what happened yesterday out of his mind. There's something between the Baby Carnivore and himself, something that's... pleasant and making him feel like he's not alone.

"Kyoya, how bad of a mess are we talking about?" The false baby asks him.

"I feel... different. The Baby Carnivore and I bonded." He admits after fighting the urge to end the call.

"Baby... Carnivore." The Dragon tastes the name, weighing it. "Bonded, huh?" That's said with undercurrents of protectiveness and threat, which just causes him to roll his eyes, it's not like he needs the Dragon to protect him.

Just give him information about how to proceed from here. "I'm coming to Namimori." The Dragon states and he's the one to end the call, much to his annoyance, after all, that accomplished nothing beyond him getting a visit from the unwanted Dragon.

With a grunt, he puts the phone down and heads off to patrol the town, maybe that will help put things in focus.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

It's early morning and he's just about to drink his second cup when the front door bell rings. It's then that he senses something, yet, he couldn't just ignore the door and their... visitor. Putting down his coffee, he walks towards the door and upon opening the door, just causes him to pretty much stare at the false baby with a monkey and the most important hint towards the ID, a glowing red pacifier.

"May I come in?" The Storm Arcobaleno asks as his brain is trying to figure out why he's getting a visit from the powerful Storm. He opens the door wider and taking a step back, giving the Storm User room to do just that.

He closes the door and follows the Arcobaleno to the table in the kitchen, the false baby easily leaping onto the table. He's having trouble with... this. So, he grabs his Sun Flames and start flooding his body with the needed chemicals and hormones to become clear headed along with awake.

"Forgive me for my manners, I am Uyehara Kenji, father of Uyehara Takato. Welcome to my home." He says and the Storm inclines his head in acknowledgement.

"Fon, uncle to Hibari Kyoya." Fon introduces himself and also explains why he's here.

"Yes, he's a Sky and he did mention that Hibari-kun felt the bond settle." He cuts to the heart of the matter that brought the powerful Storm here to Namimori and directly into his path.

"He is?" Fon asks and he picks through what is being asked. "Six now, was five when he officially Activated."

"So young." Fon muses. "His mother?"

He snorts, shaking his head. "Nope, his genetic father."

"Would you like something to drink?" He offers. "Tea please." Fon says after giving his mug of coffee a look. He glances questioningly at the monkey. "A glass of water too."

So, he makes sure that his Sun Flames keep him on an even kneel as he gets a glass of water once he's got water going in the boiler. He feels the Storm's gaze on him, watching him. Judging him, which on a mental level, is freaking him out along with angering him.

As he serves Fon tea, his own drink is cold for about ten seconds before his Sun Flames heat up the liquid and he uses it to also remix the chemicals within so it's spread out. "Sun?" Fon muses and he allows his eyes to flare with his Flames as he brings the mug to his lips. "Sunny Cloud." Fon states, he just hums.

"He's still Latent." He reassures Fon after he savours his coffee. "But the fact he felt it implies he's got a secondary and I doubt it's Sun."

"What do you think it is?" Fon asks after a bit. "Given his choice when it comes to vocabulary, it's Mist."

"Yes, that does seem the most likely." Fon agrees after a few minutes. "He seemed fond of your son."

"They might have started Courting before Takato became Active. He's never been afraid of your nephew." He observes.

"Dare I ask, how?" Fon asks after some minutes, he hides his triumphant smirk behind his mug at the minor victory of the contest between them.

"I did a gender swap that used Sun Flames to cause physical transformation with an enchanted bracelet supplying a woman's template. I didn't change back until he was born." And he's privilege to witness some actually raw emotion breaking through that mask Fon wears.

And it lasts for a number of minutes before Fon manages to reign in his emotions to reaffirm his mask. "No drugs or Sun flame for the pain, Sun was busy tying up my Cloud." And that's rewarded with a wince.

"Forgive me but, what you implied..." Fon admits and he nods. "Yea, I know and you aren't _wrong_ to think that. To conclude that." He admits.

"Have you told him?" Fon asks and he answers, "He asked about his Mom and, yea. I told him the whole truth." He adds after a bit. "Still considers me his dad." No lies, just, a bunch of truths that could be strung up however the listener wants.

"Got anything recently from him on Mother's Day?" The Storm needles gently, the smile a little more real.

"He asked that a week before and I assured him that no, I will always view myself as his dad, not his mom." He reports.

"He's six feet under." He states after a bit. "They don't have reason to suspect my last identity slept with him. He was happily married and I had a boyfriend."

Fon makes a sound of acknowledgement. They remain like that for the some time, he refills the drinks as needed, he's kind of lost in his own thoughts, he's kept an eye on Nana simply because Takato might want to meet with her, to get to know her. Although, now, he wonders if that's such a good idea, after all, she's got Creep and he's not sure when it started but the only reason he identified it had to do with minor discussion he had with the three year old daughter.

Trying to tell himself that it's not his problem, just doesn't work. After all, it could have started the moment she met Iemitsu, after all, that man's Flames could twist even the most stable Users out of their comfortable zones and limits. What could that do to Latent Users among the civilian population? Those who couldn't help but be drawn to an Active Sky?

"You are the second unusual Cloud that I know." Fon breaks the silence as noon draws closer. He just hums in agreement, after all, this man has spent time with Skull, who's the Cloud Arcobaleno. Kyoya fits with the usual expectations the criminal world has for Cloud Users.

"Your son... How's his training going?" Fon asks and he sighs, after all, that's a delicate topic. "He's be able to influence animals, I don't think he notices that birds will come to him if he wants them to come. They might not stay, but they come. He's usually having a bag of bird food so, he assumes that's why they will land on him before taking off." Musingly, he adds, "They are slowly growing accustom to this behaviour and are beginning to gather up before he even has the bag open. I wouldn't be surprise if they start coming to him and perching on him while waiting for the food."

Fon kind of stares at him, like, that's news to him. "Yea, it's not just humans that can be affected by a Sky's Harmony. I'm thinking of getting a puppy and having Takato be responsible for its training. I'm pretty sure that it'll be trained in record time, too."

"Have you talked with him about Guardians and the bonds they share?" Fon asks and he sighs. "Yea, I've mentioned that other Users can be drawn to a Sky User, becoming their Elements. Protectors of the Sky and for the Sky to protect them in turn. I am trying to help him get a mind set of this being symbiotic relationships instead of the whole, Lord and Knights one that seems to prevail in the criminal world. So, I am more then happy for him to discover what it means to be a Sky, what works for him, not for others."

He gets the feeling that Fon is pleased with the mentioning of symbiotic relationships, although he senses that the Storm isn't thrilled with the idea he's letting Takato discover stuff on his own. Yet, in his mind, it makes far more sense to let Takato find what fits him instead of trying to force him to grow in the most common mold meant to shape Sky's into. "He knows he can talk with me about anything and that I'll do my best to support his effort as long as I am sure its want he wants. He trusts me to teach him what's right and what is wrong."

"Your playing with fire." Fon warns and he cheekily remarks back, "No, we all are playing with Fire, always have and still do."

"Your either very brilliant or very stupid to ignore traditions and customs in this regard." The Storm states and he asks, "When it happened to you, where were those customs? And traditions? Didn't know they existed until a bit later, right? Not all of those valuable traditions or customs agreed with your own observations when they started being taught to you and I'm sure, a number still cuff you to this day."

The Storm User's eyes flash crimson for a brief second before it vanishes. "On your head, so be it." Fon states and he just nods. "Yea, well, as long as I have a head I should be good." More then a little thankful for his Sun Flames, he's fairly certain that he would have pissed himself or shitted his pants from provoking that look from the acknowledged Strongest Storm among the criminal underbelly of humanity.

Then his phone rings and it seems that his afternoon appointed want to be sure there's going to be an appointment simply because he hasn't opened up his office. Once he's done reassuring the woman, he isn't overly surprised to find that Fon is not on the table. He glances at the clock and, well, he might as well assume that he's got a guest for lunch.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

The one word to express one Uyehara Kenji, unlikely to be his actual name, was infuriating. Which is surprising, given that the man clearly didn't rank very high in the ranks of the criminal underbelly that his departure wasn't commented on or missed. Which made it rather impressive that whatever Flame technique the other used to not shake like a leaf after spending nearly the whole morning in his company rather a decent one and reflects that the man had a very strong Will.

He finds himself staring at a picture on the wall of a woman, clearly pregnant, sporting raven black hair and hazel green eyes. A woman who didn't share the same features as the man who owns the house, yet, had been the same person. He recalls that a Mist bracelet had been mentioned, one that used Sun Flames to fuel a physical transformation. If Kenji was to be believed, he hadn't lied, then, that means Mists can, in fact, craft items that would allow Sun Users to physically alter their bodies to such a degree that the Sun could pass Flame disguise inspection without anyone knowing about it.

Which kind of opened up a whole range of possibilities about it working for other Elements. And that, kind of frightened him a bit. He's been a criminal for decades and he thought he saw it all, that pacifiers that could turn grown men and women into babies had been the end of it, yet now, now there's this new thing and nobody knew it exists besides this Kenji, his son, and, maybe, the local retirees.

Oh, he came to check on his nephew, to meet with the Sky who bonded with Kyoya, he had been expecting someone older, someone in their teens, ultimately. Anything but a six year old who, if Kenji was to be believed, had been Courting his nephew for at least a year, that even Latent, the pair had been in Courtship. _Well, it could be worst, I did expect the worst._ He admits to himself.

His gaze goes to the far more numerous pictures, some featuring father and son with the rest featuring the two in separate pictures. The two share the same shade of hair and any slightly different features could be contributed to Takato's genetic other half, who people assume being the absent mother. Only now, he's aware that the 'mother' never ran out and the actual 'father' was very much dead, which the woman who gave birth now the man of the house and, as far as records are concerned, Takato's biological father.

There's a story here, one that is clearly private and highly personal between father and son. One that the son has knowledge of, although how good of a grasp a six year old have on these kind of matters... Who knows? Particularly given that the son could have inherited any Flame, yet ended up a Sky instead of a Cloud or even a Sun. Which almost means that the genetic father had been Active as well, if for this kind of development to happen. Two Actives can give birth to children sporting different Flame types then either parent, in fact, it's almost expected in some places and hoped for.

_He's far too patient, I wonder if he's always been that way or did he learn it?_ He wonders as he glances back into the kitchen, his... host is making lunch for the two of them, Lichi is occupied with a bowl of grapes and apple slices. He kind of has to admit that as a host, Kenji is proving to be decent in regards to accommodating his animal companion, not many would think to regard Lichi as anything more then a decoration or an extension of himself.

Skull can be patient, not that his fellows would agree with that, yet, it's true. In many regards, it seems that the two appear to be cut from the same cloth, yet, his host's secondary are Sun Flames when the man used them to re-heat their coffee. Clouds have a tendency to block the Sun, obscuring the Sun while the Sun could slowly wear on a Cloud. The two, like Reborn and Skull, seem to be naturally at odd until dominance with Reborn on top being ending it. Which should mean that a Sunny Cloud shouldn't be possible. He could accept Misty Cloud, for, as Kenji observe, Kyoya's secondary had to be for what were Mists but low flying Clouds?

There doesn't seem to be a buffer between Kenji's own Flames. Could he have a third? While unusual, having more then two can and have occurred. And if he did, it might not be strong enough to manifest beyond keeping the two, more dominate Flames, in check. _Lightning?_ He muses as he glances at the woman that Kenji had been when pregnant with his son, Takato.

After all, women with Lightning Flames get groomed for seduction missions, perhaps that was Kenji's MO? Was he branching out when he ended up pregnant? _Wouldn't have had to worry about kids when your partner ends up dead._ He reflects with a frown.

_I'm guessing, grasping at straws. I don't have all the facts so any conclusion I draw would be flawed. I have some time before I'm expected to take missions, I can stay here and observe the situation, gather more evidence._ He tells himself and that... helps calm his emotions. Feeling more like his usual self, he heads for the table, he does his best not to stare at the finger groove in the metal table. Clearly, something upset his host enough to cause that reaction, no telling how much damage followed.

"Hope you don't mind udon noodles in your Ramen." His host says as he brings over a bowl meant for someone his size. Thankfully, it seems that Kenji did have a preference for solid colors and no prints of any kind, making it almost like it's one meant for adults instead of children of the age group he appears to be.

"Thank you." He says goes through the motions of Japanese table manner before starting to eat. Which, is fairly good and while there's unusual tastes, which he reaches for his Storm Flames just encase, it is filling and sits well in his stomach.

His host follow suit and there's really no need for idle chit chat right then.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Baby Carnivore." He greets his Sky, Uyehara Takato, who smiles at him, today is his ninth birthday and the six year old asked him to meet him here, in this park.

"Thank you for coming, Kyoya-senpai. It shouldn't... Ah, they did that fairly fast." And he glances around to find a rather large array of birds hanging about near them. "I mean, sure, they never minded dad but..."

"Ok, might as well get this over with. Please cup your hands." He glances towards the younger boy to find that there's a bag of bird seed.

After a few seconds and getting an inclining of what is likely coming, he complies and sure enough, the mass of birds from sparrow to crows come flying down to perch on them both. Some of the more timid ones flying off within second while the bird seed is poured into his cupped hands. "Slowly, raise your hand." He listens and soon enough, birds are coming to eat from his hands.

Takato joins in feeding the masses and he allows himself to smile as birds take their fill of seeds with Takato refilling his hands. There's silence between himself and his fellow human, yet, it's fairly noisy, giving the chirps and caws. That connection that hangs between Takato and himself, it is warm, comforting, and caring.

"Happy Birthday Kyoya-senpai." Takato says as they finish feeding the birds with him watching the last ones fly free in the sky.

"Thank you... Kohai." And gets a beaming smile before they head off to get clean. Perhaps he should have worn some old cloths like his Sky suggested in the first place. But then, it's just cloths.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

Fon smiles, he's got plenty of pictures of the pair and it warms him that it's clear that Takato had been preparing for his nephew's Birthday for some time. He dimly recalls Kenji mentioning Takato conditioning local birds to eat from his hand. Lichi returning with another camera.

All evidence suggests... Takato's coming along fine, even if he still isn't satisfied by the fact that Kenji wishes for Takato to discover what Sky Flames are capable of. He strokes Lichi's fur as something settles within him, that his nephew was the care of a good Sky.

"Perhaps I should ask him to be the one to guide Kyoya in learning how to use his own Flames when he Activates them?" He muses, after all, despite his attitude, the man is a Cloud and would be able to handle dealing with the resulting damage.

Cross that bridge when it comes to it. He tells himself. After all, there's time yet, for him to pass final judgement on Uyehara Kenji.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Your dad's Birthday dinner, right?" He hears his dad ask and he turns to note the caramel hair and eyes belonging to one Uyehara Takato, a kid about his age. His mom's in the kitchen, baking him his supper.

"Yes sir." He hears the other say. "How much do I owe?"

_What do I know about Uyehara-kun?_ He muses to himself. As of late, he's been feeling kind of... restless. Which he shouldn't after all, his mom's alive, and he's got baseball. What more could he possibly want?

Teammates who share in his excitement for the game, he's popular because he's such a great player, and he's gets good marks in school. _Yet, they don't seem to want to know me as me, just who I appear to be._ It's not the first time he's observed that. He typically just lets it slide, yet, he finds himself once more staring thoughtfully at the brunet, the son of the family doctor, one Uyehara Kenji.

It's only been recently that the slightly younger boy has been drawing attention to himself. _Well, not really drawing, that would imply he's trying to catch people's attentions, which he hasn't, as far as I can tell._ He admits in the privacy of his own thoughts.

"Son? Takashi? Are you alright?" He feels his dad's hand on his shoulder and look up to find concern and worry in his dad's eyes.

"Hey dad, what do you know about the Uyehara family? I mean, I know Uyehara-san is our family doctor. That he saved mom's life." He asks and there's a different kind of emotion lurking there.

"Has something happened with Takato-kun?" His dad asks and he frowns, not sure how to explain it.

"It's just... a lot of kids have been... He hasn't done anything different yet..." He admits, rubbing the back of his neck. He's nine and there's something about this that just seems kind of... surreal.

"How many kids?" His dad asks in an almost sharp tone. He gives his dad a worried look. "Ah, it's not a lot and it's not just our age. Then again, the few more aggressive ones get put off when Kyoya-senpai shows up before they go too far."

"How does Kyoya-kun act around Takato-kun?" His dad asks after a bit of silence, the hand on his shoulder feeling rather limp.

"I've never seen him try and bite Takato to death, then again, he's never broke the rules to draw him to get bitten to death." His dad closes his eyes and there's a bit of anger yet despair. Like, defeat, he's never seen his dad look like this... _Well, that's not true. When mom had been..._

"Has he... approached any of the other? Takato-kun I mean?" His dad asks, there's an edge in that tone.

"No! He hasn't done any different, he's always polite and firm on invites to people's houses. It's... kind of starting to bug some of the others, yet, he says he's got Guilmon to take care of and outside of school, well, he's always with his dog." He says and his dad looks, relieved yet, still defeated. "What's wrong?"

"Just... respect Takato's wishes, I... need to talk with Kenji-san about this situation." With that, his dad returns to the register, yet, that didn't really answer anything, just side step the issue.

_I'm not going to get any answers from dad, am I?_ He notes and, that's kind of, he knows his dad loves him yet, it seems he doesn't trust him, which hurts.

After all, he's nine, plenty old enough to be trusted yet, his dad doesn't. Just what are you hiding? And, if I ask Takato, will he tell me or hide it like you do?

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"Hey, Takato-kun, can I ask you something?" It's been little over a week since his dad and him talked, things changed in the house and his parents, well, the way they acted around him, it was like they expected him to break or something. Caramel eyes glance up at him from the Bento lunch box.

"Sure, Takashi-kun?" He nods, smiling slightly at his first name, then again, he had used Takato's so, it's only fair. There's a hint of concern yet, expectancy of something, which, likely had become a common reaction given how often some of their classmates and other years have asked to hang out with him.

"Your different." He states. "My dad, he... He won't tell me why."

Orange flickers in those brown eyes for a few seconds before retreating but he _saw_ it happen. He wonders, will he get the truth. For some reason, he's not sure if he wants that truth now.

"Your father is concerned for your future, Takashi-kun. He loves you very much and doesn't want you to be denied a choice of how you should live your life." Kind brown eyes stare into his own and knows, that's the truth. "The subject matter is not one to be discussed in public, it is one meant to be discussed in the privacy of the home. So please, doing press for more right now, if you want, I can bring you to my dad to see if I can discuss this matter with you."

"My thanks, Takato-kun and, I will think about it. I may take you up on that, just, not today." He says and his classmate nods, accepting the answer.

He walks off to have his lunch with his friends, satisfied that, yes, Takato would have told him if he had permission to speak of it. That, soothes something within him. For now, he has an answer, one that explains his parents' behaviour enough without revealing the heart of the matter. _So... whatever it is that is worrying them, they think will deny me choices of how I want to life my life. They worry for my future._

_That's expected, yet, it still rubs him as it's taking away a choice in itself. After all, how can he know how to go about avoiding making the wrong choice if I didn't know what it is or what causes it?_ He allows himself to frown for a bit before straightening and putting on a polite look.

They were his friends, after all, best not to worry them about what's troubling him.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

Even after a month, his parents were treating him with caution and it's starting to effect him enough that his friends were picking up on it. Which means that it's time for him to take Takato-kun up on his offer, after all, what else could he do? He's tried to subtly bring the matter up with his dad, as it's clear that its his mom listening to his dad in this matter.

"Takashi-kun." Takato greets him as he waits near the gate instead of having gone off to play baseball with his friends. "Please follow me."

Nodding, he tries his best not to stalk angry behind his class-mate nor let his irritation show upon his face, doing his best to portray a polite manner and keeping his emotions from his face. As they draw close, Takato sighs and glances at him, giving him a surprisingly flat look with only little flicks of orange in those otherwise hazel eyes. "You know, you can act your age, you know? You are angry and hurt by the lack of trust your parents have in you, you are entitled to scowl and slouch while acting out a bit."

He stiffens upon hearing that, not sure how to react. "It's... distracting." Takato admits, closing his eyes and taking a calming breath. "Pushing it down doesn't make it go away."

There's something about that admission that makes him feel rather sheepish. "Sorry." He says and Takato gives him a bit of a half-smile. "Yea, I figured you would be, but, well, we're kids. Just imagine how worst it'll be when we're in our teens."

A chuckle escapes from him and that thought, kind of was frightening. "Thanks." He adds and Takato nods before they continue on their way.

The building is the same he's been taken to when he was younger and he is content to follow Takato through the building. "I brought Takashi-kun, he wants to know." He is very much aware that Takato's dad looks like he hasn't age since he last saw him.

Violet eyes study him while Takato moves to sit on the couch that's off to the side, leaving him to the scrutiny of the adult. "Did you want to sit down? If you want, you can sit on the couch with Takato." He glances towards Takato for a second before moving to sit in one of the chairs.

"The reason for your parents' worry have to do with your father's past as a free lance hit-man." And, well, that's something he hadn't known about his dad, yet, for some insane reason, believes Takato's dad. "I don't know how involved he was before he Activated his Rain Flames but once he went Active, he, like many, found their options limited."

Kenji then holds up his right hand and makes a fist. Then, suddenly, purple flames with yellow and specks of a third surround the fist, yet, the doctor's skin remains find. "I am a Cloud and the yellow you see? That is my secondary, which are Sun." The arm extents and the fist flattens, he can't take his eyes from the way the purple flicker.

Yet, he reaches forward, half expecting it to burn or to start burning his skin, yet, it's just a slight increase of warm but that's all. "That you can see my Flame means you have the potential within you to Activate as your father had."

"My dad's Flames? What color would they be?" He asks as he withdraw his hand from the warmth of the doctor's Flames, not really wanting to stop touching them, yet, it's likely impolite to touch something so... personal.

"Rain Flames are blue." Takato's dad explains, the flames vanishing once more and the arm withdrawn. "And yes, Takato's Active, which is the cause of concern in this case as they fear that being in such close proximity to an Active Sky means you'll not just got Active but you'll fall into a condition called Flame Rejection."

"That... sounds bad." He admits and Takato's dad nods. "It's known to drive Flame Users insane and the only mercy one could grate them is death." _He's not pulling any punches._ He notes, yet, it helps. _This... this is what I wanted from my parents all these weeks._

"Your father was a hit-man, he didn't belong to any Family so nor did any try to approach him for a position in their Family." Takato's dad explains. "So, he's never really had a chance to spend any time in a Sky's presence, much to his disappointment and relief."

"Why... disappointment?" He asks, cause, well, this Flame Rejection sounds like reasons why to avoid Sky Users. Suddenly he's very much aware of Takato being in the room.

"With great risk, there is greater rewards with success." Takato's dad says and that, yea, that seems to be how it is, isn't it? "Sky Users, they are seen as royalty. They are seen as Idols, they can do no wrong, and I ask you Takashi-kun, if you grew up with people telling you that your whole life, that they might as well be gods incarnate, what kind of person do you get?"

That, hit close to home, after all, isn't he something of a baseball idol? He recalls his various observations and concluded that yea, that's... He closes his eyes and bows his head a bit. "But... you don't seem the type to think that." He reflects and looks into the adult's eyes, "Takato-kun's not like that."

"He isn't but the retirees that once walked in longing and dread of a Sky's attention, do you think they see him? Or do they, in fact, see a Sky who, with but a whim, could bring their kids or grand-kids to heel?" He notes that Takato's dad sounds exasperated and annoyed. "I'm painting a pretty bleak picture, aren't I?"

"Yea, you kind of are." He hears Takato say and the doctor glances at his son, a bit of a smile. "Why not tell him about the reason?"

_Reason? Yea, that would help, maybe._ "Harmony." That strikes a cord and something within... a yearning. Then there's sadness and loneliness, so much of it that his eyes burn and tears threaten.

"Well, I... hadn't expect that as a reaction." And he tries his best to, yet it doesn't want to stay in. He's aware that the grown man has moved and he buries his head into the man's shoulder while clutching the shirt.

The tears, they just kept falling and he doesn't have a clue why.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

_Well, that could have gone better._ He admits as he looks at the exhausted kid on the couch. Takato brought the blanket from the other room to cover Takashi with.

"Dad?" Takato chews lightly on his lip, he lifts an arm and his son digs his own face into his shirt, placing his arm around Takato's shoulders. "It's like he's a grieving Element." He observes, which is... puzzling as far as he knows, Takato should be the only Sky the young Yamamoto has ever had contact with.

"It looks like I have to speak with his father about this." He tells Takato, after all, how can he not? "Yea, I know."

"Is Yamamoto-san going to be angry about this?" His son asks after a bit of snuggling. "It's not you who they'll be angry with, it's me as I should have respected his parents' wishes instead of having this conversation with him."

"He would have just kept seeking and seeking, he wouldn't have stopped looking for answers. He would have hated his dad for keeping it. Driving Takashi-kun onto the path regardless of his dad's efforts to keep him off!" His son tells him and he recalls Takashi's reaction to his Flames, at the look the sadness when the boy pulled his hand away. Yes, Takashi clearly would hate Tsuyoshi for dancing around the issue, of not trusting his son with this information.

_This way, Takashi knows what's at stake. Why his father is acting like he is._ He thinks as he pulls his son closer to his chest and rests his head on the top of Takato's own. "You need to get home and reassure Guilmon we haven't left him." He tells his son after a few minutes, after all, the dog is likely worried sick about the change in routine.

"Yea, I should." Takato acknowledges a few seconds later but makes no move to pull away. Then, after a few more minutes, Takato does and he lets him. "I'll start supper." His son says and he nods.

He watches his son walk out of the front door of the building before turning to look at the tear stained face of one Yamamoto Takashi. "Well, might was well get this over with."

"Hello, looking to place your usual order?" Tsuyoshi asks with a great deal of false cheer. "Takashi is over here, Tsuyoshi and, for some reason, he's grieving like an Element who lost their Sky."

"What?" The man finally says with steel in his voice. "You know, your son. The boy who's been trying to get a straight answer about why Takato's suddenly on his radar? Who's in the same grade and class as him?"

"And no, it's an Element's Grief, not Flame Rejection which is very strange, after all, Takato should be the only Sky he's ever met." He tells the man.

The phone is picked up by Tsuyoshi's wife, the name slips him at the moment. "Hello? My husband kind of, flew out of here like the hounds of hell were on his heels."

"It's Kenji and I just phoned to inform you that I have Takashi here, at my office and for some reason, he's grieving in a way that only Elements do when their Sky is dead." He tells her. "I think I'll be seeing your husband soon, I hope you have someone other there who can lock up for you?"

"No, we have customers... I better make a few phone calls." He repeats himself, "It's grief, not Flame Rejection. He's alive, just in emotional pain."

"I see, at least, well, he's alive, that's what matters." They say their farewells before each hanging up.

He moves to sit next to the couch once more, wondering just what the fuck is going on. After all, he's very much aware of what going on in Namimori and beyond the, seemingly now yearly, visits from two Officers of the Varia there's not many Flame User visitors or new members to the retirement community. "Tsuna..." The boy whispers before starting to cry once more.

"It's a name, I'll see if Fon's heard of a Tsuna." He mutters before he moves to wipe the tears that were trailing down the boy's face. He does his best to calm the boy, it works a bit and Takashi goes back to sleep.

Over an hour since he called, Tsuyoshi finally arrives and stills at the sight of him wiping Takashi's nose. "He's... Thank the gods." He resists the urge to roll his eyes, after all, he reassured them he was alive.

He moves as Tsuyoshi wanders over and kneels next to the couch, brushing some strands of hair from Takashi's face. "Did... Did you get a... A name?" The man asks him and he takes a moment to study his fellow parent before answering, "He whispered Tsuna before starting to sleep cry."

And Tsuyoshi blinks, it's fairly clear that he's never heard of this Tsuna. "There's... That sounds like a nickname." Tsuyoshi observes in a slightly distant tone and he just nods. "It does, doesn't it?"

It's about thirty something minutes later before Tsuyoshi's wife appears and starts crying tears of relief at seeing Takashi very much alive, if a bit tear stained. "Oh, my son..." She whispers and moves to join her husband by the couch.

"Leave when you want, don't worry about locking up, ok?" He tells the small family, who give a slight nod to show they heard but their focus was on their son and upon each other.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"Hey boy, how's Takato?" He asks Guilmon once he's home, the mix breed is more then happy to see him and moves to greet him with his tail wagging. He begins scratching behind the dog's ears, he studies the black markings he cause to fur to grow in upon the canine's head.

After getting his offering of scratches, Guilmon leads him to Takato's room and looks up at him, after all, the door is closed which means that the dog can't get into the room. He knocks on the door and hears his son walk towards the door. As the door opens, Guilmon tries to get into the room but his son gets him to sit, the dog whines but obeys. "Takashi's parents arrived at the building, I told them they don't need to worry about locking up when they finally bundle their son home."

"That's good." Takato breaths out in relief. Then gives him a look and he answer the question, "They didn't yell at me, they were far more interested in seeing that their son is alive with their own eyes then tearing into me about foregoing their wishes on this matter."

"But they still might, later though." His son asks and he nods. "Thanks for doing it anyway." His son says once more and he smiles at his son, after all, hadn't he had the same worry once? It showed up and they... over came it.

"Your supper is in the microwave." His son says and he nods, he ruffles his son's hair before saying, "Guilmon, come." The dog looks up at him and follows him from his son's door.

He checks the food and water bowls, topping up the water before he re-heats his supper, with Guilmon trying to sucker him into feeding him human food all the while. Adding the dishes into the dishwasher, he settles on the couch and turns on the TV. Guilmon moves to lay before the couch as he settles in for some channel surfing before going for his recordings. Doing his best to distract himself from what could have beens, if his son hadn't asked about his mom back when he was five or had chosen the option that would have granted him a lie.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"Carnivore." Kyoya greets him upon entering his office. He could tell, something happened with his son's Element.

"Hibari." He returns the greeting as the other stands in the doorway of his office. The young pre-teens uniform looks unruffled nor does it look like he's favouring a particular limb.

"The Dragon says you are to help me sharpen my claws." The twelve year old states in a straight forward manner.

He smirks a bit, after all, this is news to him, yet, perhaps it shouldn't be that surprising as Fon and him seem to be locking horns in a manner of speaking over a number of Flame related matters. A thrill of emotion seem to spark in the boy's eyes. "We'll use the basement."

"Also, there's more for Cloud Flames then just increasing your physical body." He says once he unlocks the door that leads to the heavily Warded and Enchanted basement. Placing a hand on the hand print, calling on his Flames, he feeds the passive Mist Constructs, his Sun Activating security measure to keep damage in the basement while his Cloud boosting the durability of everything in the basement.

Kyoya's attention, is at the park like setting that's filled with experimental plants. It's not just flowering bushes or fields of flowers, he's got trees bearing different kinds of fruit and herbs he's trying to promote to grow certain kinds of chemicals naturally instead of lab created. "Sight can be enhanced, at night, one can use Cloud Flames to increase the sensitivity to light or to see a far wide range of color during the daylight."

"Smells, if you have something of who you are hunting, though you have to watch out or the general stink of the city can overwhelm your own senses. It's about selective boosting your sensitivity to a certain scent, which is fairly hard given one would find it far easier to just to it in a general manner." He walks forward.

"Hearing is the same, you need to know the tone or pitch of who or what your homing in on or you'll just become deaf." He continues, looking back at the boy. "I think you are smart enough to guess the general direction I'm going down, correct?"

"Touch." Kyoya supplies after a few seconds. "Which can, if used right, lead to walk crawling." He muses and there's a hint of disbelief from his now student.

"There's not much I can teach you when it comes for fighting, Kyoya, but I can teach you how to hunt. I can teach you how to use your spit to poison another." He notices a slight widening of the eyes. "Yea, yet, it's not just begin able to kill someone, either, though, that's really up to you if you want to know how to keep someone from dying on you with just your Cloud Flames."

"Ready to get started?" He asks with a feral grin. After all, he's had years to test what works and why certain things were very bad ideas but if one tries this maybe it can work. And fix what he accidentally injured or broke with his body with his Sun Flames.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"The Carnivore... Is frightening." His Cloud Guardian informs him about a month after senpai has Activated his Flames. They were resting in Kyoya-senpai's office, his elder brother figure formed a group called the Namimori Disciplinary Committee and they claimed some space in the school.

"Really?" He muses, then again, he might not be able to tell simply as it is his dad. His Element gives him a frank look before returning to looking miserable, it seems that Kyoya-senpai did something outside of his dad's basement, something he hadn't perfected so now is suffering from the overload.

He does a clear approach and waits for Kyoya-senpai to give permission to touch him. Placing a hand on the shoulder, he hums a bit and his Sky Flames roar gently to life and he waits for Kyoya-senpai's Flames to mix with his before he sinks his Flames into his Element, it's not hard to find what's causing the Harmony of Pain within Kyoya-senpai's head. Slowly and stopping at the slightest twitch from his Guardian's Flame, he smoothes out the problems. It's why he was sent for, after all.

As he slowly pulls out his Flames from Kyoya-senpai's, they seem reluctant to have him retreat but they allow him to. He can't help but smile softly as he feels Kyoya-senpai falls asleep and he moves to put a blanket on his shoulder's before taking up residence on the couch. His bond with Kyoya-senpai has only strength since he was six and which brought Fon and Lichi into their lives.

Yes, Fon and his dad do fight over matter of customs and traditions along with what should be told in regards to a Sky's duty to their Elemental Guardians. Then again, Fon keeps saying everyone was an Element while dad just calls those who are bonded with a Sky an Element. If one can use Flames, they were a User, not an Element in his dad's eyes and, well, he prefers his dad's view as it means that other Flame Users were people first and foremost plus, it means they weren't bound to bend to the Will of any particular Sky Flame User.

_Words have meanings. Names have weight. Titles are two fold._ He muses and he glances out the window. His thoughts drifting towards a particular class-mate, one who's still grieving over the loss that he can't seem to remember.

He still feels guilt and a sense of responsibility towards the young Rain User, for it's clear that the episode Activated Takashi's Latent Flames upon his return to school after a two week absence. The way they move and curl about the other, they were being used to make all emotions numb in order to keep the Element's Grief under control. It's clear that Takashi's dad helped teach him how do so, yet, it's not really doing much but delaying the healing, if there can be any healing to be done.

Where before Takashi had been wearing politeness as a mask, it's now become a suit of armour and more then a few have noted how... icy and far more logical the other has become. What little empathy Takashi once displayed... There's more then a few students in school who were frighten and likely have no idea as why they were, just that they were picking up on something that everyone was just not wanting to see or ignoring.

"Carnivore." He hears Kyoya-senpai state and he glances at his much better looking Element. "Class."

"Yes, Kyoya-senpai. See you later." He says with a grin, yea, he'll be late but, well, they did see him get escorted here so it's all good.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

Looking down from his perch, he studies the... young man wearing the body of a boy. Yamamoto Takashi's behaviour changed during a two week absence from school when he had been nine. There is something that... irritates him as he watches the Rain User walks away from school as once upon a time, that boy would go off and crowd up the baseball field with his herd, enjoying the sport and the company of his peers.

_None of my business what herbivores do._ He reminds himself, after all, he's got training with his Sky's father. Training that's only increasing his respect for the older Carnivore as he begins to learn how the why you do this instead of that. The world has become far more livelier place and he is slowly growing accustom to the task of delicately using his Flames in perceiving this world. He's growing as a hunter, in time, none will escape his bite nor will they deceive him when he finds their hidden watering holes and bolt holes.

_You know, you can use Mist Flames to construct your own set of wings._ The Carnivore's words ring in his ears and believes that is true. After all, had he not seen the claws the Carnivore can craft with his own Sun Flames?

Yes, he grows and in time, he may prove himself to be a Dragon as well. Complete with scaled wings and a set of bullet proof scales. Yes, there's still much to learn and yet, he feels as though there is something missing. _Or some ones..._ A soft voice whispers.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He's numb and it wears on him. His body temperature is below average for a human, yet, it doesn't cause frosty chill of his Rain Flames harm him not. He felt the piecing eyes of a hunter at his back, yet he does not feel fear that the feeling should invoke.

_Tsuna..._ It's a name, it's HIS name and HE'S not HERE. There's no familiar, faint pull that would lead him Home. No matter how he searched, there's no evidence of HIM to be found.

A collection of familiar strangers, his gaze turns to where a certain white haired preteen is jogging. There's a group of fellow preteens with the boy, there's no bandage across the nose nor does this boy shout at the top of his lungs, asking people to join his EXTREME boxing club.

Then, their eyes meet and, well, the other slows. He blinks and realizes, that the other seems to almost recognize him in turn. He stops walking to watch how the other will act. It's unlikely the other will approach him here, but, perhaps, else where?

Their eyes shift else where and the other jerks before start jogging, although, he feels the other gaze at him once more before continuing on.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

_Black ice._ That's the first thought he had upon meeting the eyes of the maybe ten year old. The gaze... it was wrong on so many levels.

Then again, the other recognized him, as in, pick him out of a group kind of thing. Focused on him in particular. He had slowed then stopped before they shifted their gaze.

As the other started walking and he moves to catch up, he take time to memorize the uniform and how the other is carrying themselves. A name sparks went he Activates his memory followed with a smiling face of the other. "Yamamoto Takashi." He tastes the name, it's kind of heavy yet, it seems... Extremely right.

He's going to meet up with that kid, he's got to meet up with that kid. He can feel it in his bones and Flames, he's meant to.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Good boy, Guilmon." He says to the dog as he brings the ball. Scratching the dog behind the ears, his gaze landing upon the markings his dad managed to have grown upon Guilmon's coat.

He did something similar a year ago only on his stomach and... bright pink. His dad laughed yet did help him fix the color. He reversed it a month later due to having grown bore of the mark.

The reason had been two fold, one, quick identification in case Guilmon ran off and the second, was to show him an example of what Flames can be used to do that didn't involve destruction or death. _Still, I kind of want to know, why Guilmon?_ It's a strange name for a dog, yet some of the adults would roll their eyes at the name, clearly knowing it from some where or smirking and repeating his name then his dog's. He's been tempted to just run a search, but, well, maybe he didn't want to find out what it means or if had to do with an old joke.

"Hey Takashi-kun." He greets his class-mate who walking down the path of the park. The other pauses and looks up at him, he feels Rain Flame lick his skin before Takashi greets him, "Takato-kun."

Guilmon whines a bit, sensing something wrong. He gives Guilmon a calming pat as he regards the other. "How's thing going with your dad?" He asks politely.

"Very well, my father has suggested I think about entering a few tournaments." The Rain User politely replies. "And yourself?"

"Nothing planned beyond ranging about with Guilmon." He replies. "Is today a free day for you?"

"I have plans." Takashi says simply. "If you excuse me, I see who it is I wish to meet with."

"Yea, see you." He says and watches as the Rain User head directly towards an old case of his dad's. "Well, ready for a jog around the park, boy?" Guilmon's tail begins to wage and he gives his buddy a quick scratch before heading for the edge of the park to jog around.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Takashi." The white haired preteen greets him before turning to his younger sister plus her friend. Familiar strangers, the both.

He inclines his head, the name... escapes him. Then again, they might be the same age, it doesn't mean they attend the same school. "Oh great, another monkey." Murmurs the friend and the sister looks between himself and her brother.

"Go, I want to talk with him. Wasn't there a kid with a dog around here?" And with that, the sister heads off in search of Takato and his pet, Guilmon.

"You're... different." The preteen notes with a hint of something he assumes is sorrow. "It is a different place." He comments on.

"Yea, it is. I mean, I'm not that extreme any more, but then, I kind of connect better. I get things now."

"He's not here." He informs the other, not sure why he feels the need to share that. "How... can you be so sure of that?" The older boy asks and he feels his Flames flare with the numbness biting down.

"I can't find traces of him any where." He retorts icily.

"The dad use to be away a lot, could be that instead of having her and him settle here that they might be traveling with him or in Italy?" Muses the other and, for the first time since his dad taught him how to numb his emotions, something pushed back the Grief.

"Italy... That's, far from here." He reasons slowly. "It could be distance." He allows and the other places a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, you attend the same school as Kyoya or did? Has he?" And he sighs at the question.

"He's got a new Sky." He tells the other and the preteen blinks in surprise.

"Wow, really? It's... hard to imagine, but, well, it could be because he doesn't remember, right? I mean, I don't, recall everything and I've found it's hard to reach for something when it's not there yet. Then again, I wasn't... I was Hyper last time around." Could he blame Kyoya for finding another Sky when he didn't remember Tsuna? After all, Takato and Kyoya seem to have known each other for a fairly long time and, well, he only started remembering that late afternoon in Doctor Uyehara's office when he was nine.

"What's this Sky's name?" The former boxer, _Ryohei_, his mind finally supplies, asks. "Uyehara Takato."

"Isn't that the name of Doctor Uyehara's son? Wow, huh, I never would have guessed. I mean, his dad is a Sunny Cloud." He nods as he slowly releases the Rain technique, allowing himself to feel his emotions.

"Both of his parents likely were Active." He muses as he recalls something about that from his dad.

"Feeling better?" Ryohei asks him and he nods, smiling a bit. "Yea, I am. Thanks to you."

"Don't worry about it, after all, I'm sure I would have been pretty shaken up if I recalled what his Flames were like and couldn't find them anywhere." The other says before pulling him in for a hug, he returns it, feeling Sun Flames help warm him up.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He couldn't help himself as he stares at Takashi, everything about him is different then it had been yesterday. It's like the sun finally chased the clouds from the sky, allowing the rain stop falling from the sky. Takashi notices his gaze and blinks, titling his head to the side, studying him and he feels embarrassment over the fact that he's staring.

It's during lunch that Takashi approaches him, asking, "You were, that worried about me?"

"How could I not be? You were Numb, all over. I'm not the only one who noticed you were Cold." He tells the other honestly.

"You shouldn't have worried, I was... I wasn't thinking." Takashi tells him and he snorts.

"You were Grieving for your Loss, of course you weren't thinking clearly and not tending to your emotions, you weren't healing." He states, looking at Takashi in the eyes.

"He... Might not be dead." Takashi admits and he shrugs, not caring whether or not Takashi's bond or not.

"Doesn't matter to me, you were in Pain and I helped cause it. Bond or not, you are a person, Takashi-kun, and it hurt knowing I helped inflicted it and not sure if my offer of comfort would be accepted or wanted." He tells the other.

"You're... A lot like him, you know?" He rises an eyebrow at the comment, cause, he wouldn't as he's never met another Sky.

Then Takashi place a hand on his shoulder and... both of their eyes widen as something clicked in place. He breath is caught in his throat while Takashi looks ready to faint in... Joy? _Ah, I don't get it... Shouldn't he be, I don't know, angry about this?_

"Tsuna?" Takashi whispers and he stiffens, that name, it's like a blow, like a slap in the face. _Dame-Tsuna..._

"Are you ok?" Takashi asks and he blinks. "Please... don't call me that." He whispers softly because, because is wasn't worthless. HE WASN'T, NOT HERE, NOT IN THIS LIFE!

"Are you... yea, it's not your Name now, is it?" Takashi muses and he nods. "I can feel you so much better now too." The other admits and he allows his Sky Flames to trace the bond, it's not as strong as with Kyoya-senpai but, it could be.

"It's lunch. You should go eat." He reminds the other. "I'm not going any where." He adds and slowly Takashi withdraws his hand.

"Yea, your right, you aren't." There's steel there and it's not aimed at him, though. It's a promise of protection.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He had been right there, for over a year, his Sky had been in the same room. Healthy and whole, so very much alive. The same and yet different.

_He meat it, it didn't matter if I could Bond with him or not, I was still important to him._ He reflects, joy bubbling through him and he can't help but feel the link between them. It's so different then what they had last time.

_And Kyoya found him first._ The sudden thought almost made him giggle, that in some ways, the final Guardian from the last life, was the first of this one. _And I'm the second. Which makes Ryohei the third, one we get around to hooking up again._

Soon school ends for the day and he finds Takato waiting for him. "Where are we headed?" He asks once he joins the other, walking next to his Sky.

"My dad's office unless you need to meet with your dad?" Takato asks and he shakes his head, saying, "No, I said I was going to try and hang out today. They were pretty relieved when I said it."

"Although, we could try and find Ryohei, he remembering too." He tells Takato. "He's the Sun you meet yesterday? He was one of my dad's cases, I think it was a case of Creep."

He recalls Ryohei mentioning something about Hyper. "What's a Hyper state?" He asks, cause, now it's bugging him.

"Tunnel vision with a singular Goal. Most Flames will die if they remain too long in that state." _And Ryohei had that last time around?  
_  
"Sun's are likely the only ones who can function given they can heal any damage done in such a state." Takato adds. "Dad said it was akin it to pretty much trying to direct a geyser, you can, with the right tools, but it might be more trouble then it's worth."

"He's not like that in this one." He muses. "Because of your dad." He glances side long, cause, shouldn't he be living with his mom?

"We could look but, well, he's likely got plans for today, right? We could find his number and arrange something." Takato muses and he can't argue with that logic, after all, it had just been yesterday that they met up and Ryohei helped get to him through his Grief.

"Kyoya?" He asks after a while. "He's got patrols today, he'll be visiting dad for training tomorrow."

"You found Kyoya first, huh?" He muses and Takato gives him a bemused look.

"He's a Cloud and the town is his Territory, it would be down right weird if I didn't get to know him sooner. He's been patrolling long before he became Active." Takato tells him and, well, clicks as to why so many adults kind of, didn't bother Kyoya a lot, in both lives.

"When did it happen?" He asks and Takato says, "When I was six, a bit before I got Guilmon."

_That's, well, yea, there's no way Kyoya would have remembered._ He muses as they reach the building.

"Hey dad, Takashi's better but, well, we're Bonded, like, today." Takato tells his dad without much prompt but then, Sunny Cloud and he knows that Kyoya hates beating around the bush. It's likely a Cloud trait.

"And the trouble is?" Takato's dad asks, looking at the two of them while holding a mug of some warm liquid.

"He... touched me and it just, snapped into place. Then, well, when he called me Tsuna, it felt like I'd been slapped and I swear I heard Dame-Tsuna echo in my head." He stills, cause, that's sad, that his Sky would feel that way about his old name or that its the dreaded nickname that he remembers first.

"What's it short for?" Takato's dad asks and he replies, "Tsunayoshi, last name had been Sawada."

_Oh look, that rung a bell, not the first name but the last._ He reflects. "Let me guess, Nana was the mother's name and Iemitsu the father's, right?" The doctor Uyehara mutters and rubs the bridge of his noses.

It dawns on him, "You kidnapped him?" Takato sighs while Uyehara smiles in a wiry manner. "Hard to say if that's the right word for it, after all, typically, kids get kidnapped after they were born."

"Still my dad." Takato says with a warm smile and an orange glow in his eyes, it's a look he's pretty much sure, he's never seen the previous Takato give to anyone.

"So you keep claiming me to be." Uyehara-san says with the same warmth and fondness. It's clear that whether happened, how ever Tsuna became Takato, that Takato was loved and loved this man in turn. It's heart warming sight.

"So, want to see how I did it, Takashi-kun? How I ended up with Takato in my care?" Uyehara asks once he turns to look at him and there's a look in those violet eyes that reminds him of a certain, likely current, pint size Sun that answers to the name Reborn.

"Sure." He says and Uyehara-san brings up a picture and hands it to him. It's picture of a woman, who's also fairly pregnant. "So, who is she?" He finally asks after studying the picture, after all, the woman looks nothing like either of the two in the room with him.

"That's me when I was getting close to kill one Sawada Iemitsu, see that bracelet on the wrist?" He looks at the picture and notices it. "Enchanted, used Sun Flames to override my own genetic blue print for the one in the bracelet."

"You became a woman? Just to kill Iemitsu?" He asks, disbelief coloring his tone, after all, he's pretty sure that this rated high in the top strange ways to kill someone.

"Not all at once, it took a good three months for it to finish but, well, I had a plan and then I learnt he was married, which suddenly increased the chances of the plan working." Uyehara-san tells him.

"How old were you?" He has to ask and the adult, who still hasn't looked like he aged since he last saw him by the way, answers, "Seventeen going on eighteen."

"And this change in your plan? How did him being married alter it?" He asks, cause, well, it's clear that the woman couldn't pass as Sawada Nana.

"I got rid of the risk of getting myself killed before and after that man was dead." Uyehara-san explains. "I used Sun Flames to Activate a transfer of contents of a certain womanly reproductive sexual organ with Nana when she was, unknowingly, two months pregnant."

"It caused me to end up in the then, her while the poison gland he developed was placed in Nana. It only targeted Iemitsu so, she lived and, well, end the end, so did I." Takato explains.

It takes him a bit but then it hits him as he realizes how that could happen. "You... gave birth to him?!" Cause, well, that kind of meant that. He glances between the two.

"Yip. Had to pay a Mist to alter things and then, once everything was set, about two weeks after he was born, I destroyed the bracelet, reverting to my previous gender." Takato's parent seems to be rather bemused at his expression, but then, well, yea, after all. It's also clear that this isn't a news to Takato, which, may explain why Takato felt the need to reaffirm Uyehara as his dad.

"And that's why his name is Takato instead of Tsunayoshi." He reasons because, yea, this man before him was clearly in his right to give his new born baby any name he wanted. _And explains why his Flames were never Sealed, Iemitsu is dead, so the Ninth Don never saw fit to put a Seal on him, oh hell, do they even know Takato exists?_

"You got away with it." He says in awe. "Well, we're not out the woods yet, it's not like they haven't stopped wondering how he died or if he left behind a bastard or two. I'd feel more safe when the Ninth dies and they have a Tenth in power." Takato's dad, cause, well, if that's how Takato wants to regard him then he might as well honour that, says.

"Nana?" He asks and Uyehara-san winces while Takato looks off. "She... Creep is a strange thing and, well, at least Jun, Takato's half sister, is with her father's grandparents." The Doctor admits slowly.

"She's been committed, something about hearing her previous husband's voice, telling her that he could be brought back by eating her current husband." Takato's dad explains after a fairly lengthy silence.

_How? And, are we talking about the same woman, only, we're not, just a... familiar stranger._ He reasons as he closes his eyes. Once he collects himself, he steps forward and places the photo upon the desk.

"Are you going to be ok?" Takato asks, moving to his side and placing a comforting hand upon his shoulder. "It's... I might not remember well, but, its hard to think she could..." He admits.

"For all we know, it was just a power play, after all, she might have been Creeping, but she wasn't violent. Whatever her normal state had been, it wasn't geared towards murder, let alone cannibalism." That, did offer some relief and comfort, well, not the idea that the one he had known might have been Creeping too, but it kind of was there. After all, how often did civilians get hurt because of power-plays of the Mafia? Or the Yakuza?

"You... want to go home?" Takato asks and he shakes his head, after all, he's spend far too much time at home, plus, he wouldn't mind just basking in Takato's presence without any of the others. After all, it's a matter of time before people start remembering, start searching. For now, he could be selfish.

Takato seems bemuse, likely picking up on his emotions without needing to read the bond between them. "Come on, we'll pick up dinner on the way home, right dad?" Takato asks, glancing towards his father.

"Sure."

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Herbivore." He states, giving the former icy armoured boy a nod of greeting as he heads straight to the basement. The Carnivore follows after, though it sounds like they'll have observers today.

He uses his Mist Flames to unlock the door, the Carnivore holding it open to allow his Sky and the Rain to enter as well. His fellow Guardian lets loose his appreciation of the basement training ground and while some part of him is irritated what that's a sign of, it also means that the Pride is going to becoming together again. There's... someone he wants a rematch with, someone who he knows will be rejoining their Sky.

_And won't he be in for a surprise?_ He grins in a feral fashion at the future reactions from that one? An old debt to be settled and he'll be fair better prepared then his old opponent could have imagined him being.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"So... why Guilmon?" Ryohei asks one rainy holiday morning. Even Kyoya spent the night, although in Fon's room instead in Takato's room, but it counts.

"Eh?" He muses at the teen. "Well, it's kind of a misnomer? He's got no gills!" Ryohei remarks while playing tug of war with the dog and he glances to find that the others seem to be discreetly interested too.

"It's kind of due to Takato's name, actually." He admits. "Plus, Growlmon? Yea, no, just no. Same for Gallantmon or even Megidramon."

And now they were all staring at him, dog included. "Well, it is a pretty old anime by now, I guess." He admits.

"Do you guys want to watch it to see their name sake?" He asks the group and sure enough, their answers were fairly typical of what he's come to expect since Takashi bonded with Takato and the first mentions of memories from another life were mentioned.

It wasn't hard to find the title, was kind of surprising, they all seem just sit there and watch it, there's a few jabs verbally towards his son but they watched it. Guilmon the dog also seem to be intent on the TV screen. As for him, well, it's just a reminder of his childhood.

They didn't really make anything for lunch, just a bunch of instant noodle cups throughout the day plus popcorn and whatever junk food certain members of the house hold hid from one another. He ordered dinner and made a few calls to let certain parents know that it looks like they'll be spending the night here so they can finish watching the whole season and then they ended up watching the two movies that they made for this season just to have a thorough watching.

They crashed in the living room and he mostly just walk around, putting blankets on the group. _Wonder what you'd think of Rurouni Kenshin?_ He muses in a tired way as he puts a blanket over Takashi before heading off to his bed.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"So, what should we do?" He's twelve years old and so far, out of his collection of Guardians and Family members from their last life, he's got his Cloud, Rain, and Sun Guardians. Not that he misses the headaches they brought, but, they were people he cared about and he misses them. They were on a trip to Kyoto with Guilmon with Takashi's parents chaperoning them for the three day vacation.

"Sight see, I guess." Ryohei muses after nobody really answering between the three of them. Kyoya-senpai is somewhere around, likely planning to use this trip to track how well he tracks them down at a later date. Given that his dad's still aiding Kyoya in figuring out new things with his Mist Flames, it shouldn't be that surprising that his Cloud's growing to be far more fearsome then he had in their previous life. _He's got that Dragon transformation down pack._ He recalls with a bit of a proud smile.

His memories of being Tsuna kind of despairs at the idea of a flying Kyoya but he's Takato now and, well, his dad gave birth to him and is there for him, supporting him, helping him find ways to use his Flames how he wants instead of how he's expected to use them. He was never Sealed, his Flames were HIS and he's grow up learning to use them, then there's the fact that, well his thoughts were far more clear then before and his emotions were far from mute or telling him someone was out to get him... Looking back on who he had been, he has to admit, he'd been ruined, first by being Sealed and then, well, the lack of _real_ support from his only parent while the bullying just supported the whole, the world's out to get him mentality.

"And taste test a few street carts?" He adds and Takashi chuckles, still eating his latest purchase from one such seller. "I can get behind that." Takashi admits and he grins, they have cell phones so they can phone the Yamamoto's to give them updates. They all had each other under their Contacts, so they can phone Kyoya if something was happening.

Soon enough, they send a text of their plans to Takashi's parents and getting approval in return before they began to put said plan in motion. So, with Guilmon in toe, they make a bee line for the nearest tourist trap with stops along the way to gawk or sample various products.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

It's their final day and the Yamamoto's seem ready to share their news with their son. Not that he knows what that news is, just that there's been an undertone of excitement and worry from the adults that are their chaperoning this trip. The restaurant seems to be a popular choice, so Kyoya-senpai had declined joining them, yet again.

_We haven't seen him since that stop at the hotel on the first day. Oh well, I'm sure he has his reasons for coming._ He decides to himself. After all, his Element knows how to find them or reach them if he wanted their help.

Guilmon's tied up outside of the restaurant, in a shady spot with two bowls filled with water and some dry food. Even without being tied up, he doubts Guilmon would go far. _Hard to believe I use to be scared stiff of dogs, huh?_

"Well... Takashi, we, well, we're going to be doing some refurnishing of the guest room." Takashi's mom says, their hands reaching and intertwining. He takes a moment to study the couple, eyes slightly widening as to where this could be leading.

"Oh? Is that why there's so many catalogues around the living room now? Is it just the one room?" Takashi asks and he couldn't tell if his Rain was playing along or actually hasn't caught on to the incoming news.

The parents glance at each other, both gathering strength from the mutual look before Takashi's dad says, "You're about to become an elder brother in seven months."

"Congratulations!" Ryohei and himself say pretty much at the same time before they glance at their friend to find he's looking a bit gobsmacked by the news. "I'm going to be an older brother?" Takashi says softly with a hint of disbelief.

"Well, we got around to talking with Takato's father and he's worked his magic to help in the matter. He'll be keeping track of our progress but, well, he's got to know what he's doing, right?" Tsuyoshi glances at him, it's become rather old news to his currently gathered Elements about how he's got a new life for himself that's very different from his old one.

"I'm fairly certain I wouldn't be here if he didn't." He states with a hint of dryness. The parents smile with her saying, "That's what we thought too, in the end." Tsuyoshi looks ready to try crossing his legs, likely recalling his dad's brutal honesty concerning his birth.

"Can you tell the gender yet?" Ryohei asks curiously, eyes bright with excitement and brimming with curiosity. "Hoping for a girl?"

"Not yet, I'm only two, coming three months along." Takashi's mom says. "And we'll love them no matter that gender they are born as." She states firmly and Tsuyoshi nods in agreement.

It takes sometime for his Rain to recover from the news, after all, must seem to come out of nowhere that his parents were trying for another child. Perhaps he just figured that having his mom around was enough of a change in his life? That he didn't dare wonder if it could lead to any other difference from his last one in regards to his parents at least?

Knowing his Element, given time, he'll be overjoyed. It might also relieve some of the pressure for him to lead a normal life. After all, they have a lot of people who are likely searching for him, consciously or not, so it's only a matter of time that a storm of chaos begins to touch all of their lives.

He feels a slight tug from his Cloud and allows some of his Flames to enter the Bond. Kyoya-senpai's own Flames welcome them, curling and mingling with his own. It's then that he gets the sense that they'll be seeing the young Hibari sooner then they likely expected.

His other two Bond seem to sense something and he sends them a thread of his Flame, reassuring them that everything is fine. He feels them relax in both cases as they reach add their own Flames into the Bond. Their Flames mingling for a bit before Tsuyoshi gives him a raised eyebrow and they withdraw from mingling their Flames, well, with those here as he can tell someone is starting to notice his Flames on Kyoya-senpai and the other keeps wanting his Flames for some reason and he can't find it in him to deny his Cloud.

Chit chat circulate among them as they talk about the sights they've visited plus their purchases or what they sampled. Their respective order come and they eat, conversation becoming light. There's a few looks coming his way but he just gives them all a reassuring smile, doing his best to keep his Flames from straying from flowing along the Bond to Kyoya-senpai.

Before they get ready to go, he puts in an order of take-out, making sure to get plenty of Kyoya-senpai's favourites. He just knows his Element's going to be hungry and it's likely whoever is slowly probing his Bond with Kyoya-senpai that there's going to be a companion, at minimum.

"The closest park?" Tsuyoshi suggests and he nods as he finishes packing up Guilmon's bowls before taking the take-out while Ryohei decides he'll take the leash while Takashi slips off to go buy some medical supplies once they start heading in that direction.

Guilmon clearly senses something is up, so he does his best to stick close. He notes that the dog's walk is a bit stiff and the tail sometimes remembers to wag. His pet's nose clearly sniffing the air while the ears flicker about, pretty clear signs that Guilmon's on high alert for possible danger.

They find a quiet spot off the beaten path and with a nod from Takashi joining them, he loosens his Flames allowing them to flow about the area while focusing on them allowing Kyoya-senpai to find them. He feels both his Elements at his side allow some of their own Flames to mingle in the air, he's careful not to have his Flame touch either of the Yamamoto's.

Then, he feels another Flame join and he glances to find Guilmon's eyes alit with an orange he knows is Earth Flames. _Dad... what have you been up to with Guilmon?_ He wonders as he's not the only one staring at the far darker orange Flames that his canine companion is displaying.

He's slow to start reaching for those Earth Flames yet, they seem patient. It's a slow, oh so slow, mingle between their Flames yet, it feels right, like this was just a formality more then a first date. Love is what he sends and he receives love and loyalty.

It's not long before Guilmon pounces and pins him to the ground, licking his face. Thankfully, the take-out had been place on the ground before he even started to mingle with the Earth Flames hugging the ground. It's been years since he's allowed Guilmon to lick his face and he giggles from the feel of the tongue, his hands scratching his partner's ears.

"Ok... I thought animals don't have Flames?" Takashi's dad asks and Ryohei is the one to answer that, as he's kind of dealing with this emotional discussion going on between Guilmon and himself. It kind of has to be emotions as Guilmon's not... well, he will and likely soon, just not yet. Guilmon understands more of the gist then the actual words.

"Well, Uyehara-san has been studying medicine, which kind of stands for reason he's got an interest in biology. And, well, you can infuse plants with your Flames and done enough, you could get a type what's carrying your type."

"Those... don't look like Sky Flames though." He dimly hears Yamamoto-san as he's kind of starting to feel like he's slipping into Guilmon's skin. He's doing his best to not to but there's a Gravity to his dog, who wants him CLOSE.

"Well, that's cause their Earth Flames. See how they hug the ground? How they seem to cause that... suspension with some of stuff? Earth Flames control Gravity."

That's kind of when he lost track of the conversation and time as he's not just in his own body but in Guilmon's. Thoughts and impression trying to sort themselves out as he does his best to pull what's him from Guilmon and after a bit, Guilmon begins to do the same, much to his relief. He rather not accidently scar his partner with his vast amount of life experiences, from either life.

"Baby Carnivore." He blinks as he returns to his senses and feels Cloud Flames mingling with the array of Flames hanging in the air. He finds Kyoya-senpai above his head, looking down at him with slight worry.

"Sorry, it was... He just kind of pulled me in and then, well, we pull ourselves from one another." He admits and he feels the worry from both the Bonds and hanging in the air subside, it's not gone, but then, they have every right to worry given he's not sure he has everything in proper order but it'll get there.

He glances to his left to find Guilmon resting next to him. His partner's Flames retreating into his sleeping frame. Exhaustion from both the release and of pulling himself from his owner.

His Cloud helps him sit up and he sighs as he fights to remain sitting up, only for Kyoya-senpai sits down to his right and pulls him so he's leaning on his elder brother. "Thank you." He says softly.

Kyoya-senpai hums and yes, there's a number of eyes upon them, then again, it's well known that Kyoya-senpai isn't the most touchy feely person around. Then again, most of his real bonding time between Kyoya-senpai and himself never happened where people could see them. Plus, their moments were quiet ones, at times not even greetings beyond a nod were exchanged or farewells for that matter.

He notices that both Takashi and Ryohei seem occupied by attending to a young girl, who's maybe two years younger then him, perhaps three. There's a sense of knowing her and yet, not. Then again, should he really be surprised by that? After what he just went through with Guilmon?

_Dad's got some explaining to do._ He thinks as he finds the girl just starting at him. Like, she's having the same problem as him, which could very well be likely given none of them ultimately had all the pieces to the puzzle that was their previous lives.

_Do I really look that different from before?_ He wonders. _I mean, my genetic donors were the same as last time. The only real different is lacking a Seal and my name._

"Hey. May we introduce our Sky, Uyehara Takato. Takato-kun, this is ..." Takashi trails off, after all, this might be overwhelming along with the fact that they've never. As she might not remember much of the last Life.

Then again, there's a name that drifts up... it tugs at his mind, but, well, he's not in any real condition to look for it as that will take effort to search for the information. "I was known as Sawada Tsunayoshi once." He supplies and that, that registers with her and it's then that he realizes, it's the fact she's got two eyes along instead of one that he realizes who's before him.

"Boss? But... You're..." She looks him up and down, he sends a puzzled look at the two Elements sitting next to her.

"Yea, but I don't think he realizes it so..." Takashi admits with a shrug when Chrome follows his gaze. He can't help but frown at that while Ryohei chuckles.

"I'm here, Baby Carnivore." Kyoya-senpai states calmly and it takes a few seconds for it to register. "So you are, Kyoya-senpai." He agrees and with that, he begins to pull his Sky Flames from the air, adding them back to his being.

His tiredness fades and his mind feels like it's moving faster then before. Once he's feels strong though, he stops leaning on his Guardian yet Kyoya-senpai doesn't move away, content to remain sitting to his right, pretty much touching distance in terms of his elder brother's personal space. The others do the same once he's done and for the next little while, there's silence, a comfortable one bit a bit deafening.

"I got take-out for you two." He breaks the silence and glances to find that it's near the adults. "I didn't know who he was bringing so, most of it is his favourites."

"Thank you. And, well, I would like to be called Chrome, again." She says and he smiles. "And I would like to be addressed by Takato, I have fonder memories attached to the name then my old one." _Same as you with the name Chrome._

The take-out comes out and Chrome does pace herself while Kyoya-senpai continues to be content sitting next to him while he is eating and that they are in a public place. Acting as though those around them don't matter nor that it matters that they know how comfortable he's being, sitting next to him.

He turns to regard Guilmon, now that he's assured that everything is going swimmingly with the others. _Here's hoping we don't go through that again. I'm not sure I could do it again._ He thinks as he reaches out and pets his partner's head, his eyes upon the markings that he now knows the origin of along with the source of both of their names.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

On the train ride to Namimori, she can't help but reflect on the events of the day. After all, how was she to expect that Hibari Kyoya would drop in on the turf war between herself and a gang of Yakuza? She's been using her Mist illusions to make it appear as though a gang had been holding that area ever since she ran away from home.

Yet, drop down like an avenging angel or fallen angel he did. Declaring her under his Pride's protection and when the Yakuza wouldn't let the issue drop? Oh, she kind of remembers how good a fighter Kyoya had been yet, that fight, it was clear that Kyoya's skills have grown as there were times in that fight that it was like sound itself was a weapon for the Cloud to use.

She had almost fled, it had something to do with, well, that he may attack her next due to Mukuro previously possession of her. Then, well, then she felt Harmony clinging to him. So, she stayed where she was, watching as the teen toy with the Yakuza, for her benefit even, like he wanted to show off a new toy.

Her cheeks color as she glances to where Kyoya is sitting, alone yet he really isn't. She felt the Bond that was the source of the Sky Flames that had been coursing about Kyoya. They were warm and supportive.

Then she started probing them and they didn't seem to mind, just as long as she hadn't tried to interrupt the flow between Kyoya and themselves. So, she studied it and found it an old one, that it was firm and strong. It's clear that the relationship between the two was built on a strong foundation of respect and trust, which, she thought, meant that she was going to face a different Sky then the one she'd known.

Yet, still, she followed him away, away from the life she had been defending. She saw familiar strangers along with a pair of adults, one she felt like she knew a bit better. And then she noticed the array of Flames, not just of the Sky she could feel but Ryohei's surprisingly calm, for once, ones and Takashi's playful ones.

Then Kyoya added his own to mix and there was a preteen on the grass where Ryohei was placing a resting dog, gently in the grass next to them. Soon enough, she's introduced to the Yamamoto's and then she's get attended to by the Sun and the Rain, even though, the Sky might need their attentions more.

Her gaze shifts towards the same said preteen listening to music viva his headphone from his phone, oh, his coloring remains what she recalls. It's his manner and Flames plus a new Name to go with a new Life that marks him in a way he likely doesn't realize, why she hadn't realized that the one from the past had been the one laying upon the grass, next to a dog that didn't look like the one Takashi owned.

_He's taller then I had expected to be._ She muses. _Calmer and far more confident in himself._

Without any demand or a question, Takashi tells Kyoya of the events that transpired at the park, of the discovery that Guilmon, the name of the dog, had shown off Earth Flames and, well, s_omeone_ decided to mingle with said Flames. Said someone was pretty much implied and how Guilmon rushed forward and licked the offender into submission then, well, the dog kind of collapsed on the boy, so, Ryohei was moving Guilmon to lay on the grass instead of on the kid.

Kyoya hovered near and as they pretty much finished attending to her wounds, a touch of Sun Flames to be sure that they'll heal cleanly, the Cloud called the boy, Baby Carnivore. She hadn't expected to hear that kind of nickname from the Cloud nor how the two interacted after.

Kyoya let him lean on him and didn't hurry from his side. Then the Sky turned his attention upon her. The look was one of tiredness and puzzlement, then the introductions happened and dawning realization shown through the previous two. Then Takato tells her what, in her opinion, was the most shocking revelation of the day by admitting to having been Sawada Tsunayoshi but prefers his new Name.

She looks down, fighting the urge to giggle at the look of puzzlement at the fact she couldn't tell that from looking at him. It seems like there's a story there, about why it's unbelievable for people who's known Sawada Tsuna to not register that Uyehara Takato are one in the same. "What's so funny?" A voice whispers.

She's a bit startled, after all, Ryohei, from her little memories she has of him, was loud, liked the word extreme, and asking people to box with him. The one she's sitting next too, well, he looks the same and sports Sun Flames that are a touch calmer then before but, well, she still kind of expected loudness from so the fact he could do an actual whisper...

"Just thinking about today." She admits softly. "I don't mean to... Your..."

"Quiet? Not shouting extreme at the top of my lungs?" Ryohei muses gently and with a touch of humour.

"Well, yes." She admits. "What little memories I have of you... You kind of were the blazing Sun, you know? Burning fiercely, leaving none untouched in your wake."

"I Creeped last life and ended up Hyper. It was caught before it progressed and I've had mentors to help channel my energies into not just in a physical manner but into my studies." Ryohei admits and she frowns, not sure what to make of the word Creep or Hyper. "They suggested I aim for a job as either a coach or gym teacher as careers, that it would suit my temperament and need for physical activities."

"You don't get into fights?" She asks, she dimly recalls a younger sister not likely how her brother gets into fights.

"Well, not many outside of official ones or spars these days. Though, I think I might approach Uyehara-san about expanding my Flame use. I mean, I've seen some of what he's been teaching Kyoya to do and I've seen what he's done with is own..." Ryohei admits, trailing off as the teen's gaze is on Kyoya before flickering away.

She's kind of surprised to learn that Kyoya's anyone's student besides Dino. Then she recalls the fight and realizes that yes, Kyoya had been toying with those men, very much showing off a new toy if one considers new Flame Techniques toys... Wanting her to see what he can do now.

"Uyehara-san? Any relation with Takato-kun?" She asks and Ryohei coughs a bit, kind of crossing his legs with a hint of red in his cheeks.

"Well, how to put this, I can't explain it all so, as far as the world is concerned, Uyehara Kenji is Uyehara Takato's dad." Then Ryohei pulls out his phone and she gets her first look at the man who more then likely raised Takato.

With the exception of the bangs, the hair is the same brown as Takato's while the eyes are violet. It's clear that the man in the picture is happy and there's a bit of mischief in that smile with amusement glinting in those violet eyes. The man also looks to be in his early twenties at least.

"He seems like a character." She admits, after all, she's having trouble picturing the man in the picture teaching Kyoya anything. "Got a more recent picture?"

Here, Ryohei chuckles a bit more fully and it lasts a bit longer, so he hands her the phone. It didn't take long to get the date of when it was taken and, she stares. After all, it was dated just two weeks ago. She goes through the photos and yea, this Uyehara Kenji appears to be the same age in all of the pictures.

Although, she does note the various ages of not just Ryohei but the others and Fon with Lichi plus the sister and her friend, the one that kept calling boy's monkeys who ended up married to the teen sitting next to her. It wasn't long before she notices that the dates of when the others started appearing in the phone and when they weren't present.

"So, who found him first?" She asks after thanking Ryohei for lending it to her. "Kyoya, they Bonded when Takato was six." He adds. "Takashi was next and, of course, myself."

"Fon?" She wonders and Ryohei shakes his head. "No, doesn't seem to remember, then again..."

_Yea, then again indeed._ She muses as she glances at Takato. "So, Kyoya couldn't have remembered at that age, what about you two?"

"Sky Attraction." Ryohei admits. "It kicked in went he was eight going on nine. Takashi asked his dad about Takato and, well, I'm not sure if that rift is mending or not."

She glances at the sleeping boy across from them. "So, wanting to know what's got his parents all up in arms and treating him like he's glass, he approaches Takato and gets told the subject matter wasn't one to the public but that his dad was worried on Takashi's behalf because he loves his son so much."

She glances to the Yamamoto couple, not sure if she should feel envious of Takashi for their involvement in his life or not. "That satisfies him but they kept at it and it wore on him. Takato had put an offer of meeting his dad to discuss it in private and after a month, he took him up on the offer."

"After some discussion on the dangers and concerns in regards to having an Active Sky hanging around from the view point of Tsuyoshi, Uyehara-san says the Word and, Takashi started Grieving, an Element's Grief, I think is how Uyehara-san put it." She stills and stares back at Takashi. "Cause, the moment the word left Uyehara-san mouth, he just started crying and the worst part? Takato was right there, in the room with him, neither knowing who they had been and the other not finding the familiar Sky feeling."

"Oh." She could sympathize with when she tried reaching out to someone who should be there, who'd always been there from some forgotten view point, she's spent days mourning. Never mind the fact that, the Sky he was instinctively feeling for, didn't feel the same.

"Bit over a year later, we spy each other." Ryohei says softly and a voice filled with emotions. "It sparked my own awakening and I recalled his name."

"The first thought in my mind when I was staring into his eyes? Black ice." Ryohei continues. "His dad had taught him to use his own Flames to numb his emotions so that the Grief wasn't so bad."

"He was so cold to the touch, when we met up at a park one day. So icy and logical." Ryohei continues and she feels her eyes prick with tears. "Telling me that **he** had to be dead. Couldn't find him anywhere in the town."

"I managed to reason with him, pointing out that this was a different life, that if I could be different then something could have happened to cause the Sawada family to not live in Namimori." Ryohei smiles. "I broke through and he began to thaw, the ice over his emotions melted."

"Then, well, he goes to speak with Takato about his behaviour and, well, a comforting hand on the young Sky's shoulder and, well, it snapped into place." She shouldn't have been so relieved, after all, it's clear that they cleared the matter up or she wouldn't be here, on this train, with them.

"It's also how we learnt that the first thing he ultimately recalls from his last life was his old nickname Dame-Tsuna and he asked not to be called that within seconds of recalling it." Ryohei explains, there's anger there, but no targets, well, not yet at any rate.

"The next Sunday, we hooked up and my own Bond slid into place and then, it was a matter of just helping each other to remember." Ryohei finishes up. "In some ways, I think we figured Fon would be the next to remember, he drops by often enough, although we haven't seen I-pin as of yet, then again, it could be due to Uyehara-san and his differences in regards to handling Flame traditions and customs plus how Takato bloomed as a Sky."

"I don't think he's one to use I-pin like that." She admits and Ryohei nods in agreement. "Yea, well, there's something going on between them, I mean, it's weird but, Uyehara-san manages to bring out Fon's Stormy nature without seemingly trying. I mean, he's managed to prove to be more patient then Fon! You know, the most un-Stormy Storm?"

"What's Uyehara-san flame?" She asks curiously, once she recovered from what seems to be an impossibility in this regards. "Sunny Cloud."

"He's a..." She couldn't help but look towards Kyoya, sure enough, he's still got all of his limbs and there doesn't seem to be any scars either. After all, when Clouds met, it's not pretty, not at all.

"Different Territories plus Uyehara-san being the elder of them and the one Active the longest didn't try to interfere with Kyoya taking of the town, so, maybe there's respect there long before Kyoya went Active, which maybe have help make their relationship easier." Ryohei reasons and, well, it sounds a good a theory as any.

"Course, it likely helps that Uyehara-san can bug the hell out of Fon." Ryohei adds with a hint of mischief to the eyes and a smirk not unlike another Sun they both know. "Like Fon can for Kyoya." She muses with a bit of a smile then yawns a bit, then looks rather embarrassed.

"It's been a long day for you, I'm here, you know. I'll watch over you, if you want to drift off like Takashi." Ryohei says gently and she looks to find that, yea, he's genuine and, it's herself doubt that makes her think it's because of who she is, not her connection too.

"Your more then just a connection to Mukuro, you know? You're Chrome, your a friend and right now, you going to have to trust that we find you of value just the way you are." Ryohei says. "I'm here and I'm not going anywhere." He adds firmly and she looks away, her doubts gone, for now at least.

"Thank you." _For caring._ She adds silently.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

She wakes to find Ryohei gently shaking her shoulder, it seems she had fallen asleep after all, yet, it still feels like she's dreaming. "Come on, time to meet Uyehara-san in person." He says to her and he offers her a hand coated in Sun Flames with a smile.

She takes it and the Sun Flames gently flow over her, the aches and protecting muscles fade as they wash over her. With a bit of a push, she stands and lets go of the teen's hand. As she follows after Ryohei, she notes that Kyoya is waiting for them to leave before following.

She assumes the others went off to collect the bags and she steps off the train. The man from Ryohei's cell is there, very real and very solid. Which, helps convince her that this is very much not a dream as violet eyes turn to regard her in a calm and a confident manner that she's beginning to guess, Takato's picked up from this man. There's a kindness there and when Uyehara Kenji's gaze turns, love enters into those violet orbs at the sight of his very beloved son.

They don't hug, but she suspects that they would have done so gladly if they had met at home. Kenji-san places a hand upon the shoulder, gives it a minor squeeze while Takato touches the same arm, gives it a minor return squeeze for gently pushing the hand off the shoulder, which the man lets happen.

Then Guilmon barks, drawing the man's attention to the canine sitting at his son's feet. Soon enough, there's ear scratches as well as a chin rub before standing once more. Guilmon's tail wagging in happiness.

She knew instinctively that in the last life, this kind of scene wouldn't be like this at all. That this man, truly was a father to this Sky, not a pretender like Iemitsu had been, who, on a subconscious level, always seem to have this need to display his dominance and power, even over his son. It had been something she hadn't felt it was her place to talk about as it was Tsuna's family and his business then hers. She had thought it was her bitterness at how she had been treated, when the man showed up and pretty much inflict the Mist Ring on her when she was just beginning to figure out what she could _do_ with her Mist Flames.

The Yamamotos with Takashi show up and Kenji greets them, talks with them for a bit. She finally gathered her nerve and approaches with Ryohei walking next to her and Kyoya guarding their backs. The man turns once they are in a polite enough distance.

"Hello, there. I'm Uyehara Kenji, I believe you know my son." Kenji greets her.

"Hi. Chrome, I'm Dokuro Chrome." She bows respectfully. "Its nice to meet you, Uyehara-san."

"I hope these boys have been treating you well. After all, I did my best to impart good manners on my son and I hope they weren't wasted." Kenji says and she gives smiles, not really sure what to say and starting to get overwhelmed which is why the man looks from her to Ryohei and then towards Kyoya.

"I'll leave the escorting you home to my son, ok? I know this must be overwhelming and it is a strange new world here." There's a double meaning there, which means that he knows, like the Yamamoto do, that their son had lived a different life.

"You sure you don't want us home right away?" Takato asks as Kenji takes the leash and moves to take his son's luggage.

"I'll head home and prepare the guest room for her arrival. I'll see if I can't dig out some of your old cloths for her to wear for tomorrow. I'm sure Ms Yamamoto will be happy to take her out shopping for her own cloths." Kenji glances the woman in question.

"As long as you're footing the bill, my good Doctor." The woman teases and Kenji just nods, "Of course, she's my niece after all."

Soon enough, she's alone with just the Sky going by a different Name. One who, slowly gets her to walk next to him as they walk off, likely to give her a tour. Only one thought going through her mind, really.

After a while, she glances toward Takato and he says, "Well, if that's how he wants the paper work drawn up, who am I to stop him?" _Paper work?_

As if reading her thoughts, he continues, "Well, yea. He'll play one of the retirees for the papers and they'll get it put through like that. I mean, how else could one explain a nine year old coming to live with a single father and a preteen son? It's easier to swallow if it's a family relation."

"Retirees?" She repeats, she just assumed that Namimori was still neutral ground given the Famiglia that owns it.

"Namimori tends to considered a retirement community for _Mafioso_ and free lance hit-men. Dad's the community's go to doctor." Takato explains. "Kind of in theme of the fact that the Primo retired here himself, creating a second home for him and those Guardian who came with him."

"That makes a lot of sense of why they'd go to all that trouble to own a town all the way in Japan." She exclaims and Takato just nods in agreement, pleased to see she's comfortable voicing her questions. She looks around with a bit more interest, wondering which of the residents were Flame Active.

Then, it dawns on her and she glances at Takato with a hint of pity, after all, it looks like he didn't get a clean break from the Mafia. "Dad's only kill one guy and he didn't do it for the money. He did it to avenge his grandfather's murder at the hand of a harden _Mafioso_ who didn't care he was killing an elderly man who, by some miracle, survived Activation at his age."

"Not that anyone among the retirees buys that. After all, Sunny Cloud with the empathise on the word Cloud, tend to be all people hear." She flushes because, that was true with her. "He showed up eighteen years old and as a single parents. It still makes the rounds ever now and again when a few of the wives often wonder in the hearing range of their husbands, if that Doctor Uyehara could give their men folk a taste they went through by giving birth to the next one instead of having them go through it again."

Even though she likely did draw the correct conclusion, she still couldn't believe it. It just doesn't make sense. "You can't be implying that! Unless, transgendered?" She asks and Takato shakes his head.

"Dad was born a male and sees himself as a he." Takato continues. "No, he paid for a custom enhancement job with a Mist who knew women. It worked, I'm proof it worked a little too well, but he got what he paid for and he did kill the bastard, nobody around here has ever asked about who the target was, I think they just don't want to know any more then that, really."

"As a she, he gave birth to you?" She asks for confirmation because, well, that's just... "Then Nana isn't your mom?"

"She's not the one who gave birth to me. She is one of my two genetic donors though." Takato admits easily. "Your not related by blood to Kenji-san, are you?"

"No, but that does matter. He's my dad, blood or not. He's family." Takato's eyes flare orange at the declaration and she smiles, because, it's clear that Takato will fight anyone who'd argue otherwise.

"But, how then?" She finally asks as they come to rest near a park, the issue of how was hard to see. "If those two are your genetic parents..."

"Sun Flames, see, upon learning that Iemitsu was married, it changed his plan. Once the change was fully anchored, he had this poison gland mean to kill the man, having used the guy's own skin and blood to tailor it like that. So, he Activated a transfer between Nana and himself." Takato says.

"Two months after the transfer, he goes to a walk in clinic and guess what he learns?" Takato's grin is fully of mischief and amusement. "Well, yea that, but that he's four months along, which is pretty odd when you know, didn't sleep with anyone to get pregnant in the first place."

"He knew you were Iemitsu's kid and he..." She realizes and she chills at the thought of how easily, this boy with her could have been killed and nobody would have ever known he existed back then.

"Some family members you can't help but be related to, then there's family you get to chose." Takato says with a smile and she knows she's included in that latter example. "He made his choice and he dreaded the day I asked about who my mom, cause, then he'd have to tell it all once the flood gates opened."

"Throughout my life, he's never told me a single lie, not even a white one if he could by the time I got around to asking why my mom ran off." Takato explains. "It was my fifth Birthday and, I know now what it was that urged me to ask, but still, I did that day."

"Do you want a sweet lie or a bitter truth?" Takato repeats and she can hear an echo of the man she just met today, at the train station. "I left the house not long after, I just couldn't stay there right then."

"Kyoya-senpai found me that night and I asked him the same question. He picked the bitter truth I recall, I think it was the push I needed so, I go home to find dad drinking something that wasn't sake and told him my answer."

"So, you've known from such a young age." _He trusted you at such a young age to pick your poison._ She notes.

"Oh, he was drunk so of course we likely strayed off the topic but at the same time, it helped me understand him better. I didn't understand everything then and now, its cleared up, cause I'm older and I can grasp its seriousness better now." Takato admits.

"You didn't tell anyone." She notes and Takato nods. "I knew telling anyone about it was BAD, that it wouldn't FIX anything, just CAUSE more pain and suffering. There wasn't going to be a good ending if I talk about it, even if I didn't grasp everything that was said. In time, I did ask for more clarification of details and then questions that confused me."

"That's changed." She notes and Takato nods, replying, "Everybody, upon learning that yes, I am the genetic kid of Iemitsu and Nana always bring up kidnapping. It's not the right word for what happened but calling it an accident isn't right either."

"You know you know there's more to being a parent then being one of the genetic donors, I'm pretty sure of that even if, as Tsuna, we've never talked much about..." Takato kind of waves his hand between them, which is true, it wasn't that they didn't have the chance, it's more that it never really came up for any reason.

"I saw it at the train station." She admits. "And I just knew, I might not have my memories or had a lot of time spent around your back then in regards to your family but, I get the feeling, back then, it wasn't like it is now."

"The Seal messed me up and then, she... In this world, dad kept an eye on her and figured out she had Creep after talking with my half sister when she was three. Which, if that remained true form the two, it would mean that, she couldn't give me the support I needed to stabilize after being Sealed." She files away the bit about the half sister.

"One change in a plan and here we are." She reflects, her mind going to something a certain marshmallow lover said before they did what they did. "He did mention differences, in fact, he said there would be, cause he said that it would take a major change for you to live past thirty."

"I wasn't exactly listening when he talked, I was too busy worrying about your guys, about how you shouldn't go to all this trouble. That you had lives beyond me." Takato says and she reaches forward, suspecting what would happen but, waiting it, secure that they wanted it.

It didn't snap into place or slide. It bloomed between them and senses that there's room for Mukuro in this Bond. That they will need to share the title one more but, for now, she'll take up the mantle until the other joins in this Bond. _Or perhaps he'll leave the official duties to me and take up the unofficial role?_

"Welcome home little sister." Takato says, CLAIMING her as FAMILY, as a SISTER. "Big brother." She says and they hug with tears of joy and happiness pouring faces, there's a touch of sorrow there too. This is her BROTHER and they were FAMILY.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"How was your first day?" He asks his new niece as she enters into his office. It had taken some time to help her get caught up to where she needed to with school work.

She moves to sit on the couch in his office, her eyes glancing around the room before replying, "It's strange and they crowded me, a bit." Chrome admits. "I almost used my Flame but, I'd then feel out Takato through the Bond, calming me. But, well, I slipped up and nothing I did helped, so I asked for help reigning them in and he responded by lending me some of his Flames to undo what I did."

"Well, as long as nobody died, I'd say that's a success." Which earned him a look mixed with alarm and relief. "Chrome-Chan? Incidents happen. They will happen, all we can do it take it one day at a time." He reassures her.

"But, but, what about the... The Vindice?" Chrome says fearfully and, well, he's never heard the others mention them nor seem to fear them.

"They are still kind of attached to their bodies." He notes, he's only really witnessed them show up twice and, well, the second time proved that yea, it does seem to work that flooding his brain with the right chemicals could and did allow him to work clear headed. "I've lived here since Takato was born, I've never seen the self proclaim mafia police show up here."

"There's not a lot of turf wars in Namimori to have them come calling. Just as long as you know you need help and get it, I don't think we have to worry about them showing their bandages around here." He tries again to reassures her.

"You've seen them?" Chrome asks and he sighs. "I've seen them appear only twice. I had been paying good money for information about any local turf fights to watch how others used their Flames."

"I've seen about a dozen fights before I caught sight of the 'legendary' boogie men through one of my scopes." He recalls how those grown ass men crumple the moment those chains wrapped themselves about them. "The portals they used, I've got my theories how to do the same."

"Anyway, I sometimes wonder if a saying I read once didn't explain what I saw." He admits. "It goes, Fear erodes Will, yet Will crushes Fear."

"Where did you read that?" Chrome asks curiously. "American comic books have this series called the Green Lantern, they an emotional spectrum to weld their powers granted to them by these rings."

"Ok..." Chrome trails off and he continues on his original topic. "Well, the two times I saw them in action, the men just... caved into fear long before those chains touched them. And there was, at both times, just two agents of Vindice for nearly two dozen people, not all of whom, were Active but there was just two vs. over twenty grown ass men."

He can't help but shake his head. "Fear took the fight right out of fully grown _Mafiosi_ before either of those two stepped out. They turned on each other, fearing for their lives or freedom."

"They weren't defeated by the Vindice, they defeated themselves." He sums up.

"Not many learn that lesson." Fon remarks and then Lichi comes to land on his shoulder. "It's a good learnt to teach and to learn."

"Welcome back, Fon. I would like to introduce you to our newest family member, Dokuro Chrome." He says. "Chrome-Chan, this is Fon and he's considered the Strongest Storm User among the underworld and this is his animal companion, Lichi." He gives Lichi a slight pat before the monkey decides to clamber over to where Chrome is sitting.

Soon enough, his shoulder is occupied by Fon. "I am sorry my appearance startled you. It is a pleasure to met you, Dokuro-san." The dwarf of a man says before settling upon his shoulder, making himself comfortable while he's activating a few of his hormones and chemistry to force his muscles to relax to a normal degree.

"It's nice to met you, sir." Chrome says before adding, "You many call me Chrome."

"And you may call me Fon, forgive me for not giving my clan name." The tiny man says. He can't help thinking, _It's the only name you've given anyone in the underworld. So, of course they'll call you that._

He really doesn't get why the Storm Arcobaleno seems to hang around his house when he's related to Kyoya but he's not going to press the issue. Some part of him wonders if the reason Kyoya can't stand to be in the same room as the Arcobaleno might have to do with the curse and that it was a reminder that even his powerful uncle can fall prey to something demeaning as a condition that forces him to appear as a weak babe. Or it could just be the mask of calm the dwarf adult tends to wear.

He, of course, cheats like fuck when they end up in some of their contests where he wonders if they haven't cross into the territory from virtue of prudence into the vice of sloth. It's... good practice for him to keep on top of him using his own biochemistry but he swears that one day, the Storm will start something in the physical realm and... He's not sure if the victor won't be just as dead as the defeated, cause, yea, he'd use ever trick and then some to win, even if it kills him.

"We were just discussing my first day of school." Chrome explains. "My control slipped and, well..." She glances at him, like he's one to kick a half starved, abused kitten.

"Nobody died and you used the Flames Takato granted you to fix it. I said it before and I'll say it again, incidents will occur. Just deal with them at they come as worrying about any future ones is an exercise in futility." He says reassuringly.

Fon hums in agreement, pretty much echoing what he said, "Kenji-kun is correct." _Since when did I rank a -kun from you?_ He wonders. "As for your fear concerning the Vindice, while valid one, it does seem unlikely you'll come to their attention. They generally are attracted to large gatherings or investigate cases of Elements creating waves among civilians."

"I will try to keep that in mind." Chrome replies and Lichi seems to decide that yes, the young Mist User can be allowed to stroke his fur. Then Lichi, sensing their tension, decides to get the young Mist out of the crossfire.

_So, what bring you here after four months?_ He wonders while beginning to Activate the right chemicals along with slowing certain body functions.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

There's a gathering of young Flame Users in the entrance slash waiting room. Not long after silence descended between the two, Chrome noticed and worried, phoned his son, who likely let the others know before arriving to witness the spectacle.

He's only recently notice their usual audience, after all, he's trying to spend the least amount of energy as he can, waiting for Fon to leap off from his shoulder as that'll Activate his body as normal. His sense of time wasn't gone but it also wasn't that urge to pay any mind to the hours spent doing... nothing save breath and have their heart beat.

Then, he is aware that Fon moved, which releases certain chemicals briefly before the previous state of hibernation. Then it happens again and once more, the chemicals flow into him for a brief time. Then, there's a series of movement from Fon and he turns to look at his current passenger upon his shoulder, doing his best to give the cursed man a questioning look.

Then Fon flares his Flames, which flow over his body, enough to Disintegrate his triggers. He's slow to use his Cloud Flames to protect his cloths while the current dwarf leaps from his shoulder and onto his desk and his body is now struggling to return to normal and uses a mix of Cloud and Sun to balance out the awaking.

This turn of events were something that were a long time in coming, at least, in his mind. For Fon though? "I didn't think it possible." Fon states. "Or someone so fool hardy."

"I don't see how it's all that surprising." He muses. "Humans have been toying with it, trying to influence, even using labs to create artificial ways to manipulate it."

"Ah... What are they talking about?" Takashi asks and both of them glance out of the door to stare at the group of youngsters.

"Dad's been using Sun Flames to activate his body's natural creation of hormones and chemicals. Sometimes adding Cloud Flames to speed up the spread of in his body." He rather touched that his son actually took the time to figure that out.

"Oh, is that all? Hey, doesn't that mean he's used it with his patients, too? I mean, my parents', well, they been to civilian doctors..." Takashi trails off and he rolls his eyes as he begin to stretch his body a bit.

"He could have Activated other bodily functions like cancer or getting devoured inside out by gut bacteria." The cursed adult snaps in anger. "One just doesn't turn their Flames in on themselves like that."

Takashi looks down and off to the side and Fon's gazes sharpens upon the young swordsman and then upon Chrome, who's kind of very focused on her shoes. He can tell that Fon is a bit stunned, after all, there's rather wider number in this building who've done just that for one reason or another. _And I didn't teach them, so you can't blame me for it either._

"I thought you were only teaching Kyoya?" Fon asks.

"Kyoya has been my only students and I have only started to give Ryohei-kun books along with some seeds to work with." He tells the Storm. "They're boiled ones too, so it'll take him some time to figure out the chemicals needed to Activate them to grow."

"What's why they won't grow? That's... tricky, sensei." The young Element admits and likely filing that tidbit of information away. "I approve!"

"Glad you like my teaching methods, Ryohei-kun." He says while Fon's gaze goes towards Kyoya.

"The Carnivore has taught me to fly." Kyoya states and Chrome glances over towards the younger Cloud. Then again, she hasn't seen them working on finding what fits Kyoya's style like the others had nor seen the basement filled with plants he's engineered with gentle touches of Activation with a helping of Cloud to speed up their growth.

Fon makes a slight chocking sound and stares hopefully at Takato. "I've been learning how to use all the Elements when it comes to creating things, like, re-writing the laws of a space within my closet. We've been keeping Guilmon in there as he's been getting destructive with his Flames."

"Re-writing the laws of..." Fon trails off in disbelief while Chrome perks up at the mention of this field of practice her Sky is pursuing. "Wouldn't that just be a Mist territory?"

"In some ways, yes, but, well I've been using Lightning's Hardening to maintain the new laws while adding a touch of Cloud to slow down the decay. Still working on adding Sun's Activation to heal the damage done from reality trying to return things to the natural order of things." This son admits. "I think I might be missing something to help with that too."

"..." Fon seems to be rather speechless and Lichi moves to comfort the curse man. There's a bit of a strangling sound that comes from Fon after a few minutes, the Storm trying to make sense of this large dose of information.

"Don't some of you need to go home? It should be fairly late and you have school tomorrow." He tells the group and they flush as a few take out their phones, checking the time.

Kyoya is the first to leave along with Ryohei. "I got permission to spend the night." His son's Rain states.

"Well, I did stop off at the house to feed Guilmon before coming here." Takato admits and he already knew that Chrome came straight here from school. "I made sure to grab something for dinner for myself and Chrome-Chan on the way here."

He glances at Takashi. "Yea, I chipped in with Ryohei for delivery." The boy admits.

"And I won't be hungry for a while yet, so, why don't we show both Chrome-Chan and Fon the basement." He says, clapping his hands together. It's not hard to usher the two down the hidden hallway nor through the door.

He hears Fon take a rather sharp breath while Chrome gasps at the beauty that's he's grown in the hidden space that he called in a lot of favours and money to create and upgrade over the years. He's used what's within the basement as 'herbal' remedies and he's still working on recipes involving the various parts of the plants grown down here.

"I would also like some notice if you want to spar with Kyoya, please. I'll need to activate measures to keep the damage of the resulting rampage between you to a minimum." He tells the Storm.

Fon doesn't seem to hear him, or it just might be that he's far too over whelmed why this particular revelation that had been proceed by what the kids had been getting up while under his, seemingly, watchful eye.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He watches as the ball that Lichi had toss for Guilmon hangs in the air for a few seconds before the canine leaps to grab it from the air. It's been three days since what was revealed to him at Uyehara's building. The horror of what's the kids have done while learning to use their Flames has very much faded, although the present knowledge that Guilmon is now Flame Active still horrifies him and causing him to wonder what it would be like for Lichi to do the same.

The dog dashes and then does a whole body spin, releasing the ball from his mouth, it flies through the air and Guilmon recovers from the spin to watch Lichi scrabble to catch the ball in turn. Guilmon dashes forward a bit and woofs approvingly as Lichi picks up the ball from its hovering position a foot above the ground. Gravity returns to the ball and Guilmon begins to pace, excitement was clearly that of a dog, yet, the powers he's been using, shouldn't be ones a dog should _have_.

There's more going on in that doggy brain now, even if it's clear that some thoughts remain the same. The clear enjoyment of playing fetch or should it be catch now? Seems to be one of the signs.

"Ok, what was Tsuyoshi thinking, teaching his son to use that on a permanent basis?" He asks Kenji. "That his son was in pain and he couldn't stand to see his only child in that state."

"He knew Takato was a Sky? Why wasn't the first thing to cross his mind to see if Takato would take him on? To form a minor Bond?" He asks.

"The reason why Takashi was even in my office that day? The one who was aiding his son get answers to questions? Help?" He hears a bitter tone in Kenji voice. "Why would a Sky help when it was a Sky who did this to him?"

He... Could see the logic of that, he may not like that he could, but it's... Sadly true. It was never the Sky's fault if someone got thoughts in their little heads about what they actually mean. _The poor dears, just couldn't handle the pressure, no?_ He thinks.

He's not in the mood to let those thoughts and feelings fall free like leaves upon the winds of a raging storm. He wants to be angry right now, so he clutches them. Allowing his Storm Flames to simmer a little hotter.

"At least Ryohei got through to him." He admits and Kenji hums in agreement. "Then Takashi bonds with him the very next day. That must have been a bit jarring for the two of them."

"Not in the way you'd think." Kenji admits. "Once Ryohei and Takato meet, it happened again, so in under a month, Takato goes from having a single Element to three of them."

He hadn't wondered about it, not really, just marked it down as Takato finally calling more Elements to his side. This though, it was such a mess that sounds like it could have been avoided far sooner then after a year. And Takato got a pair of Elements out of it, Bonded instantly.

"Did you ever get any information about that name?" Kenji asks after a bit. They just continue to watch the two play.

"No, I hadn't found anything." _Although, Reborn's reaction, that had been interesting. Particularly given his disposition after hearing that name._ He recalls.

"Word is that the another one of Nono of Vonogla Famiglia sons are dead." The cursed Storm admits. "Succession is now a pressing concern, after all, the man isn't getting any younger." Lal isn't pleased that the security detail on this one disregarded one of the most simplest of rules when it comes to escort duty. It was, never let your protected out of your god fucking sight.

"They are all clamouring to learn the status of the youngest. The infamous, Nono's Bastard." He adds with a snort. Nobody's heard from the youngest and he has his doubts about the state of the young man's current living arrangements. Not that he's told anyone about them, after all, it's the Vonogla Famiglia, they were the Royals of Royalty among the Italian Mafia.

"Have the rumours resurface about Iemitsu's Sky Bastards?" Kenji asks after a bit. "I think there was rumours of sperm samples on the Black Market."

"Three confirmed, none of them Sky Users." He admits, then again, he's found a few of Viper's very basic and cheapest information packets in Kenji's room. The man still has a subscription. "Turns out, one of the confirmed ones had been born before the man had settle down with his wife. A Rain User who's in the care of the current boss of CEDEF."

_Snatched him up, rather quick too. Was the source of much teasing from both Reborn and Colonnello, which earned the pair a bit of bed rest by the time Lal's fury was spent._ He recalls, then again, who was he to judge? He's picked up a little stray himself.

He's spent a lot of his free time with I-pin, but then, she needs him given how young she is. Jealously guarding her existence, doing his best to keep her from the Triads. Claiming her as his student and she's proving to be frighteningly proficient in learning from him.

_It's getting harder to take care of her. She's growing so fast... soon, she'll be bigger then I._ He looks down at the empty cup in his hands. There's a reason he came to Namimori and it was to test the waters a bit, to take a lot at Kyoya's progress while sounding out Kenji concerning getting I-pin to live with him.

"There's... a matter I had wish to discuss." He admits. "I... have taken in an orphan girl, she's going to need someplace to live."

"You think just because Chrome's in the house that this stray of your can't live in the house either?" Kenji sighs with a touch of exasperation. "You have a room here, Fon. You get mail deliver here. I've had a few odd phone calls concerning matters of threats and black mail."

He hasn't realize it, but it kind of sounds like he's already come to consider Kenji's house his Home. Yet, it was and it pretty much sounds like he feared for nothing. "About those threats..."

"Don't bother, I've got a system up for the threats. It's the blackmail that I haven't been able to touch on though." Kenji says and he chuckles.

He allows himself to relax and let's the negativity he's been 'clutching' out of his 'hand'. Peace descends within and he allows his guard to drop. That sense of Home washes over him and he closes his eyes.

"More tea?" Kenji asks and he hums in agreement. Then, as their skin meets, something crackles and sparks before burning a Bond within his Flames that leads right to... He turns to start at the man, who's eyes are just as wide.

Before he could say a word, Kenji's Flames light up and yes, they are very purple with yellow, but now, now he's noticing the orange sparks that shouldn't be. After all, everyone knows that Sky Flames are dominate Flames, that they are the result of having the most balance portions when it comes to Flames. So how the hell could anyone have Sky Flames as a secondary? Let alone as their tertiary?

"Well, fuck." He states as he stares at the dancing Flames. He lets a bit of his Storm Flames out and watches as they curl through the purple and yellow Flames without harming either and the orange sparks seem to grow in brilliance and leap about his Storm Flames, sparking off more sparks in the care of his Storm Flames.

And yet, he shouldn't help but shake his head and begin chuckling which in turn becomes full blown laughter. Though the Bond seems so frail, it's there though, and now that he has it, he won't be it up, no matter how much stronger his Sky's other Flames. It's ironic that he gains a Sky now that he finally accepted that he has a HOME.

"I'm never going to get rid of you, am I?" Kenji asks with a hint of dismay, which only causes his laughter to restart all over again.

"Nope, never." He manages to tell Kenji, who's overtaken Skull as the most unusual Cloud he's ever met. "Your **mine**." He purrs as he manages to regain his breath and Kenji blushes from his tone and likely the way he purred that.

"So... who should we tell first?" Kenji asks once they called Lichi and Guilmon over so they can head back to the house.

"Do we have to? Nobody will believe it." _And I wouldn't blame them, after all, Harmony should be reining over both the Activation and Propagation, not hiding between them._ He admits. Yet, in some ways, it makes it all the more believable that Kenji could have such control over his own body, after all, one's Flames only do harm to the User if the User believe they do and it's just Kenji being far more in Harmony with his body.

"Did you ever try?" He asks and Kenji sighs, "I saw the sparks and just assumed that they weren't strong enough, so, I never tried. By the time I learnt what orange meant, I had very good reason to not let others recall the color, I used my Sun to Activate forgetfulness of the color of the sparks."

"While hard to swallow, a Sky secondary could be a thing with the so call primary was equal measure of two combine. I think that's what some speculation was concerning Wrath Flames, that the Cloud and Storm Flame were working in unison to beat out the Sky ones." He's heard such talk as well. Yet, here's his Sky who everyone will agree is more of a Cloud then a Sun simply because of the expression of purple being in greater portions then the yellow.

Kenji comes to a stop at the front door, Lichi and himself were riding upon Kenji's shoulder. "What?" He asks while Guilmon whines in concern.

"The day Takashi visited with Takato... I... I let him touch my Flames." Fon stills. "Takato's touched them plenty of times but, he was Latent."

"And you sport Sun Flames." He follows his Sky's thoughts.

"He started remembering when I said the word." _Remembering?_ Then again... there's something that does seem, right with the thought of I-pin coming to live here in Namimori.

"You might start too." Kenji muses. "Well, I guess I best tell you about it. The kids won't be home yet, so, we'll have plenty of time to discuss it."

"Discuss?" Kenji unlocks the door and while the word does sound ominous, he glances off towards the wall that sports more pictures of not just those who live in the house, but also of Takato's Guardians.

"You remember, don't you? You accused me of kidnapping Takato." Kenji says as he lets both Lichi and himself off before taking the leash off of Takato's collar.

"I check, you did give birth to him." He tells Kenji. "Yea, I gave birth, thing is, I only carried him for seven months. The first two? His genetic mother didn't even know he was there nor so, of course, neither did I."

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"So, dad told you?" He glances towards Takato as the preteen moves to join him at the edge of the roof. "Yes."

The preteen Sky sits down next to him, his mind a whirl with not just the discovery that the boy next to him was in the running for inheriting one of the bloodiest Famiglia but that, the boy, Elements, and various friend did something foolish and bull-headed as to send their souls into another dimension in the hopes of saving one wound, dying, yet beloved Sky.

And that he's included in that number who did it! That his memories from that other life will begin to appear and blend with him, now that he's aware and likely Bonded with the one who started the return of those memories. "Did we?"

"Sealed and, well, shattering the Seal didn't remove it or its lingering effects, not sure what he had could be counted as a Bond." Then after a bit. "It's like he was never given the chance at life. That the Mafia World refused to let even a single innocent Sky be untouched, that it had to mark it and cripple it at the same time." Takato admits bitterly.

"At times, it's hard to not think of it in the third person. I mean, I shouldn't look different from him, it should have been easy to connect he and I." The young Sky admits with a bitter tone.

"Have you asked them?" He asks curiously, he's kind of in agreement with Takato, but then, it's not like he's reliable in this matter when he doesn't recall anything about Sawada Tsuna.

"They keep saying it's obvious why, yet, that's kind of a dodge, isn't it?" His Sky's son muses, for it's clear as day that Takato will always claim Kenji as his dad, that Kenji desired to be called it.

"Maybe it isn't a matter of physical looks but an issue of how you carry yourself and how he had? The lack of a Seal, that could alter the feel of your Flames." He suggests and Takato slowly nods. "The name change might also contribute. Which with all of that, huh, yea, I can see it now."

"Thanks." Takato says to him with a smile and yes, he can see how Kenji influenced this boy. That his Sky has left a far different set of marks and all of them were for the positive for they had gently guided this young Sky in how to live his life in a manner of his choosing.

"Are you sure you want to be a Mafia Don?" He asks and Takato chuckles.

"I really don't but I have people who need me to be. I already have plans of searching through the records, looking for someone with the right Blood and begin grooming them to take over. After all, dad's hasn't aged much, has he?"

That's true. For as long as he's known the Uyehara family, Kenji hadn't seem to age a day since they met while Takato grew like a weed in comparison. "Yea, use the technique and use a Mist disguise to 'age'. Plus, that's no my dad's original appearance either."

He snorts, finding it hard to be overly surprised. "Have you gotten any pictures of when he was an actual kid? Or a hint of his actual name?"

"Doesn't matter much in the end, as he's lived under this name longer then the one his parents gave him. I think he's always going to refer to himself as Kenji even if he sheds the last name." Or his current looks.

"Are we sure he's human? Not a kitsune or a changeling of some kind?" He whines playfully.

"He's human, he's just got a sharp mind in that skull of his and had a driving Goal." Takato admits and he had heard the reason for why Kenji had gone to such lengths to kill Sawada Iemitsu. Then again, it goes to show what kind of stock his Sky descended from.

"Still has a Goal, it's just more wrapped up in his Territory now." He reflects with a hint of despair. Yet, it reflects the very reason why his Sky went Active in the first place. And if he were honest, it's not a bad Goal for him to pursue.

"Are you ready for Reborn yet?" He asks after a period of comfortable silence. He watches the young Sky from the corner of his eye.

"I... Hadn't thought I'd need to be prepared for him." Takato muses with a touch of worry. Then the preteen stiffens and eyes go wide ever so slightly. "It's Reborn, of course I need to have something to sooth his ruffled feathers." The boy almost whines in despair.

"He hasn't changed much." He's not sure if that's a reassurance or not. And it's rather funny how that kind of really sells it, that the two had meet in another life and the two have a relationship of some kind that is likely far more close then that of Teacher and Student.

"Hmm, so he still has preference for Italian coffee? Espresso being his favourite drink?" Takato asks and he hums a positive.

"So, I need to get my hands on some of those beans and start growing them, maybe figure out how to improve on them? Hmm, I'll start looking for them tomorrow online, unless you're headed to Italy any time soon?" Takato asks and he shakes his head in a negative fashion.

"I will be leaving to pick up I-pin and will be bringing her here." He tells the young Sky. "So, you did find her? We wondered and hope that you had."

"I found her and have been doing my best to care for her." He admits. "Your father, my... Sky seems to have plans to use Mist Flames to enlarge the space within the house for future family members."

"So that's what those sparks were? I never could recall the color of them but they **felt** familiar." Takato admits. "And congratulations on finding your Sky. Most of us were thinking you two were just circling each other, waiting for the first to start The Fight, not Courting."

"The Fight?" He is rather startled by the fact that seems to have capital letters. "You guys thought?"

"Well, he always seem to... You tended to act more like a Storm is suppose to be? That something about him just seems to bring it out. We could tell, he got under your skin and you kept trying to do the same to him." Takato explains.

"I was that obvious?" He had not idea that the kids could tell. There's no point in denying it though, because that was true. Kenji had managed to beat him in a field he always figured he was the best in, getting others to break the silence between them, of admitting that a Storm could out pace them in being calm and patient.

Oh, sure, now he gets an inkling how Kenji managed to keep control of himself during their very first meeting yet, he couldn't blame him given his usual mental exercise when it comes to managing his own emotions. And their matches of late have become... They could go for almost a full day and he's learn to use his Storm Flames just to not need to use certain facilities.

Needing drink and food wasn't something Storm Flames could help him with, unlike Kenji managing to put his body into a short period of hibernation while still being wide awake. "Looking at it now, I conclude you made your conclusions based upon what facts you had." Then adds with a slight ducking of his head and allowing himself to sound this apparent age, "We were getting ridiculous, weren't we?"

"Yes, yes you were and to be honest, Chrome didn't know what you two were like and, well, we kind of figured she needed to see it for herself." Takato says. "Nobody's going to ever believe it coming from you or that some former no level free lancer could ever be a match for the Strongest Storm."

"Kenji called me that when introducing me to Chrome." He muses as he recalls what his Sky said. It warms him now, that his Sky didn't say Fon, the Storm Arcobaleno, member of the I Prescelti Sette.

"If it helps, he's never used the word baby to describe you, he sticks to shorter then average dwarf with civilians while calling your Cursed with the retirees." The young Sky tells him. "And besides, you won't be wearing that for long." Takato nods towards his red pacifier. "I've got a few prototype containers that I want to check against one of those, to see if at least I'm on the right path in re-creating, maybe improving, the ones Talbot used back then."

He stiffens, that means, they had been... And it sounds that it's possible for it to work again. "It's why I've been doing what I've been doing with the space in my room, you know? It's not because I have a god complex, it's about bending and altering the rules that support the Tri-ni-set, to remove the need for humans in the system."

That, surprisingly enough, smoothes that concern that he hasn't consciously addressed properly. After all, why would a Sky ever need to do that if they didn't... "I'm good but, well, I know I'm not genius level in the brain department. Nor is dad and, well, I know someone local but, I kind of want.." Takato glances off in a certain direction.

"One of the missing?" He asks. Takato nods.

"I miss him, but in the end, it's the all of them that I miss but, they're not local, not like who's here now." The son of his Sky's heart admits. "I wish they'd come Home."

"They will, give them time. Their Instincts will guild them Home." He assures the young Sky.

"Yea. Yea, it will." Takato agrees with a warm, caring smile.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

It's been haunting him. He's done his best to ignore it, after all, he's check around concerning the names he recalls, Sawada. Tsunayoshi. Nana. Iemitsu. One is dead, the other remarried, and the other, the most important one, doesn't exist.

Not that it matters, his Life now was much bearable. There was no Lab, they had been given into the system, those who had in the last Life been destined to die in that Lab were Alive yet scattered about the various orphanages. His old henchmen, he gone searching for and he found them, they came to his side, which would have Confused him once, why they'd Follow him when there was no Lab.

He looks into the mirror and see a set of same coloured eyes. Yet, his Flames were as powerful as ever and his body in far better condition then it had last Life. Then, his mind drifts towards Her and he tries to reach Her but, She is not there. In this Life, they forge no Bond between them.

"She should be fine. Her memories will ensure that." He tells himself. Though worry gnaws within, after all, She could be Mourning Him as well and being closer to the supposed Location, She might not Heal.

The Siren's Song plays at the edge of his Flames. It's singing a wordless song, filled with Emotions of Home. It Promises that there is a Home to find. Pictures of Namimori from the previous Life drift through his mind for a few seconds, he slams them out at the image of Him.

**Come away, O mortal child**

**To the waters and the wild**

**With a faery hand in hand**

**For the world's more full of weeping**

**Than you can understand**

The lyrics of a haunting English song comes to mind. He closes his eyes and allows his forehead to touch the mirror's surface.

**Away with us he's going**

**The solemn-eyed**

**He'll hear no more the lowing**

**Of calves on the warm hillside**

**Or the kettle on the hob**

**Sing peace into his breast**

**Or see the brown mice bob**

**Round and round the oatmeal chest**

He grips the edge of the sink. As more lyrics sing out within his mind.

**For he comes, the human child**

**To the waters and the wild**

**With a faery hand in hand**

**For the world's more full of weeping**

**Than you can understand**

"Fine, just fine! I'll go to Japan! I'll go to Namimori, just, please, stop teasing me!" He begs the Siren Song and his longing to see Her, to be with Her once more even if he can be with Him. Tears burning to fall from his eyes.

That seems to that is enough, so the Siren Song becomes less intense and becomes more of background noise now. He pulls away from the mirror and lets go of the sink. He glares at his reflection, seeing that accursed crimson eye in his reflection. The teen who Named himself Rokudo Mukuro in one Life glares lightly at the reflection.

He blinks in the end and it's gone, he growls as he turns away. He's got funds to pull together and fake passports for the three of them along with funds for their stay at in Japan for when he's looking for Her, for Chrome... For Nagi.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He sniffles upon waking as the Dream was one he wished wouldn't end. He's too young to follow the Trail his Dream gives him, but he Wants to. Yet, it's become a Need, one that he's having trouble ignoring.

After a bit, he gets out of bed and wanders off in search of Hayato, wanting to be sure that the teen is there, that there's Truth to the Dream. "Hey, brat, breakfast is on the table." The teen says from his leaning on a counter with a mug of coffee in hand.

He launches himself at the teen's leg and hugs the Storm. Sniffling as he says, "I Dream about it again."

"So did I." Hayato whispers in a gentle tone after a few minutes of the teen just letting him cling to his jeans. The silver haired preteen brushes a hand through his hair before giving him a gentle push away.

"Eat your breakfast, brat. I'll... I'll got make arrangements." He lets go to glance up at the twelve year old.

"Arrangements?" He echoes, not sure if he likes the thought of Hayato leaving him alone right now. Not after he had the Dream.

"Yea, I'm going to get us some passports and tickets." The preteen says. "We're going to Japan. We'll... We'll visit Namimori, you know, visit the others, to see... How they're holding up."

"Really? We're going to go find Him?" He asks in awe and then in excitement. "Yea! And then we'll be a family again!"

"Eat your breakfast, brat." The preteen rebuff and he does as he's told. Vibrating with excitement at finally going Home.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He didn't have the nerve or the heart to correct the cow brat's assumptions. After all, he's done his research on the names when he recalled them. The Young Lion of the Vongola, the Boss of the CEDEF, the Decimo's father... He's dead.

That his young widow, Sawada Nana, would go on to marry another man and have a daughter with him. That there's no record of her ever being pregnant with the Tenth. He even found a minor medical report about a benign tumour that was removed and, well, that's when it dawned on him that someone killed Tsunayoshi before he was even born. That some enemy Famiglia not just killed Iemitsu but ended the life of his son before any even knew he existed.

He'd cursed and raged about them ever Trusting that fucking marshmallow eater, that this new chance at Life was one fucking ass Lie! That this promise of it Saving his Sky's Life was a joke from the very beginning.

His Grief was overwhelming and if not for that one encounter with the cow brat, he likely would have does his best to burn himself and seeing if he can't take the Fucker with him. The sight of the Lightning brat and realizing that he did have something he could do, that he knew his Sky would want him to do, it Calmed him and so, he devoted himself to taking care of the annoying cow brat.

Then, then the brat began to have his own Dreams, his Memories starting to filter through into this Life. And he was finding it harder and harder to not tell the boy about their Sky's death in uterus or that the woman who gave birth was a widow and had a daughter with her new husband. The signs that the brat's own longing and the pull towards Japan will one day get the best of the brat, causing the boy to sneak off to follow the Trail to Namimori.

Today would have marked his Sky's thirteen birthday. He reflected passively. That the Tenth would be a teenager now. That, in a different Life, his Sky would have little over a year before being selected as Heir.

_Fat chance of that happening. Can't inherit when your dead, after all._ He reflects bitterly.

He's got a steady flow of cash thanks to a few inventions he's getting royalties on. Yes, he did run away from home but unlike his previous Life, he never tried to get in good with any Famiglia and only took a few, minor criminal jobs. Mostly minor thief jobs and playing messenger.

After all, he knew his Sky wouldn't want him to bloody his hand so young, so he had to think of other ways to generate money and, well, a few e-mails to this third party company with shady contacts and he's been able to earn it viva some inventions that were harmless enough. Most minor, free lance inventors among the Mafia have used the company and he knew the royalties offered were fairly generous.

_It'll be good to see them again._ He admits as he watches the brat head off to school. He walks into the little office he set up, it had been strange not having one, so instead of a guest room, he made it into an office, an official work area for managing his funds and doing research into making improvements on some products that he could earn money on.

He didn't work on them here, oh no, he usually rents time else where for when he feels the need to put things into motion. As he sits down, he stiffens, sensing someone appearing behind him.

"I need passports, minion." A certain voice, oh so familiar and one that stirs up his Flames. "Mukuro." He growls and turns to find a familiar stranger.

They both seem to pause, regarding the changes of each other. _His eye... And is that a tan? He looks.._ His mind reels as he takes in the appearance. "Not poisoning your lungs I see." The teen who had, might still go, by Mukuro notes.

"You look more stable." He notes. "Nice tan, by the way."

The teen snorts before turning to gaze about the room. "You've made yourself a nice little home I see." The gaze lands upon a picture of Lambo and himself. "Found something to live for."

"Kind of had too." He states as he stares at the photo. "He would have wanted him to have a better life."

"Yes, he would." Mukuro, as he hasn't given him another name, admits. "He would have wanted us all to have one regardless of whether he existed or not."

"You know, then?" He shouldn't be surprised. This is a Mist who fight against the fucking Mist Arcobaleno even in while being the imprisoned by the Vindice.

"Did you know she was diagnosed with a benign tumour? They operated to remove it?" He growls as he clinches the arms of his chair. "Tumour, yea fucking right. They murdered Him before He even left the womb."

"No leads, the Mist who might have had the hit man's name died, Contract Geas killed him before he could utter a word." Mukuro shares and he sighs. "Not sure if it was the Hit Contract or one the Hit Man had created to keep his identity hidden."

"The last biological son is dead." He muses and he sits back. "I wonder who they'll pick now? Going to have to start looking through the records, looking for one with the right Blood and Flames."

"Wouldn't mind seeing the coming Ring Battle. Would they hold up or be torn asunder by the Rage of a Wrath?" Mukuro muses, dark amusement clearly in evidence over such a match and, well, yea. He wouldn't mind being a spectator for those battles, particularly the Sky one.

"Namimori? For you and how many?" He asks, because, well, it seems like the two of them were on the same page when it comes to visiting Japan, although the reasons may very well be different.

"My henchmen." Mukuro answers and he nods. "I'll get us all tickets for next Monday plus passports." He says and he feels the other's eyes at his back.

"I was His right hand, why wouldn't I make these arrangements?" Ok, so maybe he hadn't really been when it all started, he lack the right temperament and social skills but he liked to think he grew into the role. Whatever skills he had lacked, his fellow hand had made up for, as much as it had once annoyed him.

"You Feel the Siren Song then? It's..." He finally turns to give the other a puzzled look, not sure if he wants to know. "It's just baiting the lure, that's all." Mukuro states, waving the matter away and, well, he decides to let him.

Soon enough, as he's got the tickets book, he senses the Mist's departure and he sits back, wondering out loud, "So, what kind of Siren are we going to find?"

He decides he needs to go off and let loose some of this Storm Flames, to work off some of his current energy. He didn't feel like he can focus on the creating of said passports nor did he want to just go out and buy them.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He is perched on a roof a bit away from the train station. The sixth sense the Adult Carnivore had help him develop in regards of Prey entering his Territory telling him that Prey was arriving from this location. So, he's patiently waiting since dawn and now, now he sees his Prey plus his herd and fellow Pride members.

He takes out his phone and sends a text that is direct. They have come, all three plus two herd. With that, he returns his phone and begins to use his Cloud Flames to track the annoying Mist, who is a familiar stranger, yet, there is no mistaking who they were.

There's no point in wasting energy moving yet, they remain in sensory range. He'll wait until they head to the area he had long set up for this, after all, there are such things as Ambush Sites in the animal kingdom, humans don't have the monopoly.

_Enjoy yourself._ Takato sends along their Bond and he feels the trust his Sky has for him in this regard. He allows himself to smile fondly, once, his Sky had been an Omnivore but in this life, he's grown to be a Carnivore. A gryphon, the mythical beast that is half eagle and half lion.

His Sky understands him far better in this Life, most assuredly due to the Carnivore's influence in raising him and supporting the Sky, helping the Sky learn to who they were instead of who they should be. He's been leaning towards a wyvern for the Carnivore. Not quite a dragon but a relative, a cousin.

Slowly standing, he begins to mentally plot his path. There's no need to leave the heights, not when he has wings upon which to fly with in this one.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He's not sure why they were bothering to stick together. It's not like there was anything keeping them together, yet, he didn't want to Lambo to learn the cold hard truth yet. Plus, why would anyone set up such Mist Constructs?

Then, the Trap springs and Mukuro chuckles. _"So much work for little old me, Skylark?"_ The Mist remarks.

"We have a debt to be settled, Prey." A voice is soft, yet it rings out as clear as day, only they don't see the Cloud anywhere. He's reaching for Lambo as Mukuro Constructs his weapon.

Then, it begins and the Hibari is engaged in battle with Mukuro with his signature weapons. "Is that Kyoya?" Lambo asks with a touch of awe and a hint of fear.

The Cloud pushes the Mist, it's not long before Mukuro begins to use some of his signature plant Constructions to combat the Cloud. Not that they even seem to be able to grab the Cloud's cloths let along entangle the Hibari's limbs.

Seeing that it wasn't working, Mukuro alters his tactics and creating snakes, which Kyoya deals with a bemused smirk, remarking, "Have you not learnt any new tricks?"

Mukuro's face twists and frowns. "You've learnt to use your secondary." And he jerks his head at the mentioning of the Mist Flames the former Cloud Guardian owns yet never saw fit to use.

"The Adult Carnivore helped me sharpen my claws." Kyoya agrees. "Taught me to Hunt." _To track._

Oh, so they really had been spotted walking out of the train station and followed through the town. Though, he's not sure who this Adult Carnivore is, only that it sounds like Kyoya respects them enough to add an additional word to the nickname. "Is now really the time for you two to be fighting?!" He growls.

"He said to enjoy myself." Kyoya answers calmly and Mukuro lets loose a rather large Construction of lava sprouting out of the ground, having the flow of the Mist lave to head for the Hibari.

"Found a new Sky, have you?" The Mist states with a hint of sourness and he finds himself bristling at the very idea. Cloud Flames flash about the older teen and he breaths sharply at the black gem shining scales now on display along with the change in cloths just as the lava engulfs the Cloud, who hadn't moved.

There's a particular glint in those now purple, inhuman looking eyes, not bothered by the heat of the lava. Even the Cloud's hair seems to be a crest of raven black scales. Even from where they were, he could feel the heat from the illusion, notices how the grass is burning and can smell the smoke, watching as heat shimmer from the lava.

Yet, Kyoya doesn't notice it or feel it, after a few seconds, displays a row of sharp fangs before he climbs up, on top of the cooling lava. Showing that he's treating it as real, which means, the Cloud really should be affected by the Mist Construct. The cloths do look ruffled along with looking rather worst for wear, yet, they were still there.

He didn't see the Hibari launch himself at Mukuro, only it to hear the sound of Mukuro defending himself with his trident. The lava vanishing now that the Mist has something more pressing to keep his full attention on.

"He was a monster before, but, well, not like this!" Lambo whispers as they watch as Kyoya attacks with his hands, tiny claws on display for them to see. The Skylark showing off that those claws were more then pretty decoration but weapons in their own right.

"It kind of reminds me of my animal transformation, from before, you know?" Ken admits, showing that yes, the two were also remembering their previous Lives. "I also don't think that's just Mist Flames for it either or rather, Mist Flames were used for it but it's not what keeping him transformed."

"That's not an Illusion?" He asks, glancing in disbelief at the Sun. "That's an actual, physical appearance?"

"Hey, we didn't miss it then?" He glances to find Takashi jogging with Ryohei and Chrome. Familiar strangers hits him while Lambo cries out, "Chrome!"

The little guy leaps from his arms and he lets him, after all, he's kind of busy noting how they haven't change yet that they had. After all, Ryohei is calm and hasn't said the word extreme, not even when they had been approaching. The other teen meets his gaze and there's amusement there but none of the Blistering Sun from last Life.

"Hey Gokudera-kun, it's good to see you again." Ryohei greets him in a normal tone. Then the Sun turns his attention to Lambo, who's in Chrome's arms. "Hey there, little guy, how's life treating you?"

"Ryohei? Wow..." Lambo pretty much saying what he wanted too. "And Chrome-Chan's got her eye! Or is that an illusion?" The boy asks, realizing the lack of an eye patch.

"So, Kyoya's showing off his scales already, huh?" The former swordsman remarks with a whistle while still approaching to stand near him. "You're doing ok, right?" The Rain User asks as he finds something in those eyes that he's seen in his own often enough, only.

"As well as to be expected." He states gruffly. "Yamamoto-san."

"Please, call me Takashi. We are old friends meeting once more, aren't we?" The former Baseball Freak asks and he sighs while looking off to where the Cloud is toying with the Mist, cause, well, it sounds like he was.

"You can call me Hayato, Takashi." He relents as the Ryohei moves to stand by Takashi, with Chrome moving to greet Chikusa and Ken, with the brat still in her arms. "That goes for you, too." He glances towards the Sun User.

"Then please, call me by my own." The other says, once more at a reasonable tone and gentle manner. "Also, don't be surprise if Fon is around here, he's made a home here in Namimori, same with I-pin."

"And, well, our Sky's here too. He's likely trying to get Guilmon to either eat the poor squirrel or let it go." Takashi admits and he, well, that's their business.

"And Guilmon is a cat?" He assumes, a slight ping of sorrow at the thought of a certain leopard. After all, a dog catching a squirrel? Yea, they bark far too much to sneak up on one.

"A Flame User who's species is of the canine family. Takato's partner." Takashi states and he's got a name but he finds the first part a little hard to swallow. _Can't replace the Tenth._ Even though it seems like all of the locals had Bonded with the same Sky.

He feels Takashi's eyes on him and he turns to find a look of understanding and empathy there. "I thought he was dead too, when I woke and couldn't find his Flames. I searched the town, you know?" Takashi says and he knows what that's like.

"Then, well, I hooked up with Ryohei and, he made some well reasoned pointed. He helped break through the ice my Flames made." Takashi admits. "I spoke with Takato the next day about when the Grief began."

"He worried about me, saying that I was still a person and he wanted to help, only, he thought he'd be spurred." Takashi continues. "It's funny how life works out, then again, Chrome-Chan pointed out that we were warned that something major would be need, at least someone was listening to the guy, you know?"

That, brought him up short and he asks, "What kind of change did you find?" Please, please don't get my hopes up.

"Sorry but, well, he ate the first one only to grab another three along the way." He turns to find a teen walking over with a dog walking next to him. He kind of notices the three squirrels floating behind the dog. "He wanted them as a snack for later."

Brown hair and eyes, yet, the approaching Sky was unafraid of the canine walking next to him. The way the teen walked, the way the body is held, never mind that this Sky was taller then the Tenth had been likely been at this age, although some had wondered what kind of physical effects the Seal had caused. This Takato wasn't afraid to meet another's gaze and yet, what little Flames he's releasing didn't feel like the Tenth's.

"Hey, I'm Uyehara Takato! Son of the local Flame Doctor, Uyehara Kenji. This is Guilmon and, yea, I'm a Sky." Takato introduces himself. "You knew me better under the name of Sawada Tsunayoshi in our last Life though but please, call me Takato."

"Tsuna?" Lambo asks and the teen winces ever so slightly. "Lambo-kun." The teen replies, eyes focus on the brat.

The cow brat is running towards the teen and Takato is already moving, ready to catch the incoming Lightning. Within seconds, there's a change and the brat is clinging the shirt, crying. Takato comforts the boy and the dog sits down, nudging the crying brat.

"Yea, that happened when I touched his shoulder after we talked. He flinched when I called him that." Takashi tells him and he glances to find the Rain's hand clenched in a fist. "He prefers his new Name and well, it's who he is now."

"How come... So, how? I hacked what I could and the only medical information had to do with a benign tumour!" He snaps.

"Well, it was, I mean, Takato's dad created something and had been storing it in... well, her body at the time. The then she did this Sun technique with Nana, so the 'tumour' was exchanged for a two month old fetus." Takashi explains and he chokes, cause, that's... Yet, he glances towards Takato and yea, in watching him with Lambo, he can see it.

"It's amazing what having a different home life and parent can cause to happen, you know?" Takashi remarks in a light tone. "Also, I'm going to be elder brother, I'll even get to have a say on the name for my little brother." Then he asks, "Want to see some pictures of us on our trip to Kyoto?"

"You dad remarried?" He exclaims, deciding to shelf the whole issue with Takato for the moment. Takashi chuckles and shakes his head.

"Nope, my mom just never died from her injuries from the accident. Uyehara-san saved her life and then helped them conceive my little brother." Takashi responses.

"Is it me or is it too quiet?" Ryohei asks and he takes the moment to look around. There's evidence of Kyoya and Mukuro's fighting and no sign of the fighters themselves.

"Isn't he upset about them fighting?" He asks, nodding towards Takato who's holding Lambo as the brat is now petting the dog. After all, the Tenth had hated it when they fought among themselves, yet, Takato is calm and seems more concerned with Lambo's emotional state.

"He trusts that Kyoya won't kill him or do lasting harm and Kyoya's just still sore about their first meeting. I think it's more about humiliating Mukuro then any desire to kill him." Takashi says and he finds that rather hard to believe based off of memories from the last Life.

"How can he trust Kyoya that much? It's Hibari Kyoya!" He says, tossing his hands up and gesturing off at the signs of the two's fighting.

"Actually, this is pretty tame for Kyoya now. I mean, he hasn't used sound to shatter anything nor has he put anything into the force of his attacks, just keeping the Flames effects in his muscles." Ryohei notes and he's not the only one to start at the Sun User.

"He's got scales and is fire plus heat proof and you call that tame?" Ken asks. "Well, yea, it is, I mean, he could have tried using his range attacks or grew his wings." The teen states and he's not the only one choking at the idea of a flying Hibari Kyoya with range attacks.

"Who the fucking hell has been teaching him?!" Ken asks exclaims, cause, they need to stir clear of the guy. _Adult Carnivore... He did mention something about claws and hunting?_ He recalls.

"Well, Takato's dad. Fon told Kyoya that the guy was to help sharpen his claws and, well, Uyehara-san did that and more." _The same guy who killed Iemitsu viva some tumour and ended up with a two month old fetus?_ "I swear, I need a fucking drink right now." He states and Chikusa adds, "I'll take two of them."

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He's hiding and mentally cursing a certain Skylark for pushing him to this point. He did not like being toyed with, but then, neither did Kyoya. And as they say, one good turn deserves another, yet, this was just frightening as Kyoya's clearly grown comfortable with his secondary to couple them effectively with his primary.

_Never mind the fact that, I don't think he's using Flames to disrupt my illusion. He's not disbelieving them, no, he's spotting something with them._ He realizes.

"My nephew has taken much of his teacher's lessons to heart." He glances to find the tiny Storm in a branch above his head. "Hunt indeed." Fon muses with a shake of his head.

"Dragon." He jerks to find Kyoya leaning on the trunk behind him. He winces after that soft scream comes from him, after all, all the Cloud had to do was reach out and touch him and he wouldn't have noticed until it was too late.

Then he notices that the scales and cloths have returned to their original state. There's a bemused smirk and satisfaction in those eyes. Very different then the Cloud of the last Life.

"What's next? Going to carry me to the feet of your Sky?" He asks sourly and Fon groans as Lichi moves from Kyoya's shoulders to climb up the tree.

And the Cloud looks to be considering it! "Amusing as that would be, I see no reason to waste my strength carrying someone with perfectly good legs and set of lungs." Kyoya states.

The Cloud starts walking off with Fon perched on his shoulder. After a few feet, the other turns and remarks, "Chrome misses you. The rest of the Pride should have arrived by now."

Glancing around, he's left with no choice but to follow after the Cloud. Tired, hungry, and in need of a shower, he feels a bit of joy at the fact that Chrome was still going by that Name and that she has found someone to protect her until he arrived to do so.

_Pride? Has she found another Sky?_ He wonders he frowns. _If this new Sky has mistreated her..._

He snaps out of his plots of murder and torture as they return to the original location. Familiar strangers hits him at the sight of the new arrivals plus the young girl that is clearly Chrome. Plus, there's a dog with a trio of floating squirrels in the air behind it.

He ignores the animals, focusing on Chrome and is satisfied to find her in good health plus happy and content. Chrome feels his eyes on her and he sees that she's got both of her eyes, which means that she never ended up in that accident that claimed it and destroyed her organs. She smiles widely at him and she starts walking to meet with him.

The next person he focuses on is the white haired teen who still for once and silent. There's no fidgeting about either, vibrating with Sun Flames flooding the body. Ryohei nods a greeting towards him, a novelty given what he remembers of the other from the last Life.

Then, there's the Rain who had been Tsuna's Left Hand to Hayato's Right Hand position. Like Ryohei, there's a calm there yet it's clear the Rain is busy showing Hayato something on his phone. No arm about Hayato's shoulders, though, which is rather surprising as well, as Takashi liked physical contact.

The last teen is holding Lambo in his arms and talking with Ken. He can feel some Sky Flames hanging about the teen which are getting pulled towards the dog that's sitting at the teen's feet. Ken sighs and crouches down to address the dog. The dog cocks his head and Ken talks with the dog.

The dog flickers an ear before turning to regard the floating squirrels. Then, the canine nods and the squirrels float down, allowing the rodents to flee. Ken reaches out and scratches the dog behind the ears and the Sky Flames withdrawn into the teenager.

"Good to see you, Mukuro-san." Chrome says as she engulfs him in a hug which he returns a second later. It is rather odd that she's hugging him, given her history, yet, it feels Right.

"I hope you have been well, Chrome my dear?" He asks out of politeness, allowing her to pull away. He knows she is and if she wasn't, well, he'll be sure to ensure that they won't get the chance to do it again.

She giggles and he notes that he can Feel her once more, then notes the Bond. "He's my cousin on paper, his dad is my uncle. I've been living with them since I arrived here." She tells him and he is a bit taken back as that could be tricky to take her from Namimori in a legal fashion.

"He's your Sky." He notes. "Yes, he is. His Name is Takato Now." Chrome tells him and he blinks at the girl, not really sure if he could believe that. "Lambo Bonded the moment Takato caught him, although he did used his previous nickname."

He turns his gaze upon the Sky and the Sky returns the favour. There's none of the previous Don in them, yet, one could say the same about him, couldn't they? None of the previous mass murder in his own gaze, after all, this Life was a fresh start in hopes that this will ensure the Decimo could live a full life.

"Clever, nobody even suspects that Iemitsu left behind a child with Sky Flames." He muses and Chrome snorts softly. "Not really clever, just an exchange of contents with one being none the wise of it ever happened and the other unknowingly picking up a passenger."

"And when the passenger was found?" He asks, she says, "Couldn't return the kid without questions being asked. After all, four months is a tad hard to swallow, particularly with the removal of a tumour."

He snorts before laughing, mentally agreeing that yes, that would cause all sorts of questions to be asked. "So, our dear Decimo has a different mother." He muses and Chrome shakes as she laughs.

"Something like that, yes." Chrome agrees once she regains control over herself, although she still breaks out into giggles as they walk towards the group.

"Mukuro! You're ok!" Ken cries out while Kyoya finds a spot near the edge of the group, watching them with rather calm eyes and no declarations of them 'crowding' him. "This is Guilmon and he's got Earth Flames and he is not a Box Animal, either."

He looks down at the canine, who is now looking up at him. _That explains the floating squirrels._ Is his first thought. "Bit of a miscommunication of ideas but its cleared up now." Ken says and Guilmon nods his head. "He's Takato's animal partner."

"Deciding to live up to your old Name?" He asks the teen who responds with amusement, "More like living up to my current one."

"Eh? I don't get it..." Lambo admits, looking between the dog and he teen who's carrying him.

"Don't worry, we didn't either. Uyehara-san named his son after an anime character who had a partner called Guilmon. See the markings on Guilmon's head? They match the same markings the anime Guilmon sported." Ryohei explains.

He checks and sure enough, there's markings that clearly weren't something that occur naturally. Might be something to look up, he senses lots of teasing material about this. "Yea, we even got Takato a pair of goggles similar to the show, only orange instead of yellow." Takashi chimes in and Takato rolls his eyes at the reminder. _Yes, there's plenty to be had researching this show._

"I wear them during the winter, isn't that enough?" Takato asks. "I mean, if I'm to wear them all year long, that means you guys have to wear your accessories in turn."

"Momentai, Takato, momentai!" Takashi responds with a wide grin and those in the know clearly snort in amusement with Takato shaking his head ever so slightly.

"Ok, just need to fix the damage, then we can go." Ryohei says after a few minutes of comfortable silence. He watches the Sun Guardian's Flames come forth and then begin to flow into the grass which spreads which seems to Activate some Mist Construction around them.

Before their eyes, the evidence of the fight fixed itself. Once the Mist Flames vanish, Ryohei then calls back his own. _New tricks indeed._ He muses as he feels the very advance Mist Territory fade within seconds.

With that, they leave with Kyoya walking pass Ryohei, which gives Fon with Lichi a chance to leap from one teen to the next. Once more, he notes just how much more friendly the Cloud seems to be. Speaking like a normal person to him, not glaring at Fon hitching a ride upon him, nor getting angry about their grouping about.

Kyoya wanders off from them once they make it to the side walk. No verbal farewells happening, just a sense of acknowledgement that the Cloud was leaving them for his own business. No promises of seeing him later or asking if he'll be dropping by either.

He then glances at Takato already taking the lead of the group with the dog walking next to him. Seeing no reason to not parting from the group, after a while, chit chat begins as Takashi asks Hayato about how's life been treating him, which causes the Lightning still in Takato's arms to pipe in about how he's been living with the Storm.

He listens and notes how Ryohei's pace increases to match Takato, placing a arm about the Sky's shoulders while the Sun asks Lambo questions about school plus any friends he's made. Fon having transferred to Takashi's shoulder while Lichi is content to be with Ryohei.

Hayato piping in corrections to Lambo's answers in his gruff manner. The Storm often glancing at the young Sky's back before turning away. Chrome sighs from his side, likely noticing the same thing, likely feeling that this reincarnation doesn't need him, that he's Sky has out grown him. _Or perhaps it's a matter of not knowing if his usual address of Tenth would be welcome?_

It's not his problem nor likely a matter the Storm would welcome his input upon. "Where are we headed?" He asks calmly.

"The building Uyehara-san owns. His dad is likely there and its a secure place, plus, we may pick up something to eat along the way or just put in an order of delivery." Chrome answers. "Fon will likely leave us to go pick up I-pin."

"And he's profession?" He asks. "The go to doctor for the retirees." Chrome replies and he frowns. He recalls that Namimori had been considered a neutral ground where free lance hit men and tired Mafioso went to retire, once upon a time.

He's not sure when that changed at some point in the previous Life but it sounds like it holds true in this Life. After all, Takashi's father had once been a hit man and likely owned a sushi bar previously, which means that he likely does in this one. "Although, he's involved in promoting inventions, I know he gets royalties for some things he's got patents, then again, he's also selling 'herbal' remedies."

"You should see the basement, it's something. It's also where he's growing experimental breeds of various plants. We do sometimes taste test some of what he harvests, trying to figure out how best to cook it." Chrome recalls with a soft smile. "It's beautiful down there and likely the most secure location in Japan as he's always keeping a watchful eye on the all the Mist wards, enchantments, and minor territories to be sure none are mutating or degrading."

That, sounds like where Kyoya learnt to create that bizarre Mist Territory, after all, it hadn't just been a Territory but had wards and enchantments Constructed within it with maybe a few minor territories within one big one. "Flames?" He inquires, not sure if he really wants to enter the lair of such a Mist.

"Sunny Cloud." He almost miss steps while doing his best to not overly react. "Oh yea, trust me, when I heard, my gaze snapped to Kyoya, half expecting him to be missing a limb or even sporting a few scars."

"Their relationship is pretty interesting but it's a fairly stable one. After all, they don't share the same Territory nor did Uyehara-san interfere with Kyoya's efforts in establishing his when he was Latent." Chrome explains. "He's the Adult Carnivore, sometimes simply called the Carnivore in Kyoya's books."

"He's kind and you have to see for yourself the relationship father and son have. It's rather eye opening." She continues. "You can see bits of him from Takato, actually."

"Really?" He muses and his gaze settles upon the Sky, one who was raised by a Cloud, which perhaps explains the strange development of how Kyoya and Takato interact. Before, well, Tsuna had always been despairing about and skittish around Kyoya, not Takato though.

"He's the one to got the retirees to organize a passive defence against the local Yakuza, getting them to turn their attention else where. There's not as many as last time, no real 'challenge' here to earn their 'due'." Chrome remarks. "So, most of Kyoya's organization focuses on the bullying going on among the students and helping with security during festivals."

_And explains how less paranoid the Cloud is as well. He's not fighting all the time, doesn't feel harried or cornered._ He realizes. _Or in need to always prowl through his Territory all the time, looking for intruders._

"Well, well, well, that explains a great deal about our Cloud." He muses. "A great deal in deed."

Then he considers what Chrome said about seeing Uyehara in Takato. So, he mentally reviews what he's seen so far. The confidence, the quiet strength, and gentle manner. The difference concerning the gentle manner is the undercurrent, Tsuna's had been tinted with nervousness and uncertainty, Takato's manner seems to be tinted with patience yet confidence in his expression.

_Yes, I can see the some of the man._ He admits, for it seems that where there had been an abused and broken lion with a spine of steel when fully rousted, while this teen before him is a young lion comfortable in their own skin with not just a steel spine but teeth and claws to match. This new one, he can see, will walk into the realm of jackals and hyenas with his head held high, knowing that what's coming will cause injuries but confident that it'll win against the collection. That it'll be the one to carry the day one way or other.

"He'll hardly be a single lion, you know. He's acknowledges we have the right to fight by his side as long as we acknowledge his right by ours." He is startled and glancing toward Chrome. "It's a two way street with him."

"And what a lioness you'll grow into, Chrome my dear." He teases and is rewarded with a slight blush. After all, she's not dependant on him for organs nor does she lack a blind spot. Nor is this the recently Active Mist that was shoved into a fighting ring without a by your leave, used simply because of their connection.

The background conversation seem to now focus on the few tournaments Takashi's participated along with matches in Ryohei. Takato admits to belonging to an e-sport team as a rotation member, having participated in a few tournaments. Which now counts by school standards as viable alternative to being a member of a club.

"Ryohei, Kyoko, and Haru attend a different school. It's the same one Irie Shoichi attends." Chrome explains. "We stopped to change our cloths, didn't want our uniforms to get dirty in case Kyoya decided to show off some of his area effect attacks."

"Don't you need to return to school?" He muses, it's still early in the day. "Family emergency, plus, we all are ranked high in our classes that they don't mind if we skip a few classes in a day, just as long as we keep our grades up."

_Explains why Kyoya could stake out the train station._ He reflects a tad sourly, but then again, she's here by his side once more and he didn't have to spend energy or time looking for her. "He alerted you?"

"Well, yea, group text us." Chrome confirms. "We all have a cell."

They continue to walk in comfortable silence with Chikusa and Ken at their backs.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

They were hanging out in one of the building's conference rooms due to the shear number. Chrome had Constructed some couches for them once they cleared the chairs from the room. Kyoya's likely at his office or attending his classes.

Lambo seems very content to sleep in his dad's arms with I-pin. Both young kids had been happy to see each other and even more overjoyed to discovered that the other had also remembered them. They got into a scuffle, of course, but settled down after a bit and it's not like anything important was damaged or couldn't be fixed.

Fon is laying against Guilmon on the floor while Lichi is grooming Ken's hair as the other is asking Takashi questions about Kyoya's dragon form. Chikusa is playing cat's cradle with Ryohei while Mukuro is dozing next to Chrome and himself. The moment the other Mist had clapped him on the shoulder, the Bond between Chrome and himself welcomed Mukuro to its embrace, clearly surprising the older Mist that they've been waiting for him all this time, that there's even room for him in both of their lives.

The fight, for it most likely began that way even if it ended as a spar, clearly had worn on his returning Mist. Then again, most of them here have be able to train in a secure location and had someone capable to healing anything that was done during said training or even in their few yet ferocious battle tournaments which were really just them sparring with one another in a round robin fashion.

Takashi is using his phone to control the TV that's in the conference room, looking for something he thinks they will all like. Hayato's next to his Rain and his attention is miles from here. He has a pretty good guess of what's going on through the young Storm's mind. The urge to comfort the Storm is there but, it's a private matter that needs a private setting, one that's just between the two without any of the others to witness the conversation.

His former Storm had a host of issues stemming from family to his need to feel useful, how much of those issues he carried over into this Life or have been renewed since their introduction, he won't known until they get the chance to talk. _'He hurts.'_ Guilmon sends him.

_'I know, dear one, I can feel it too.'_ He sends back. _'Old hurts.'_

He feels Guilmon do the canine equivalent of eye rolling. Just because Guilmon is slowly getting the hang of thought and grasping that words represent concepts doesn't mean he's suddenly got a human's priorities or full understanding of the complexities of contradictions that go on. He's still a dog and his priorities were still that of one, for which he's thankful as he's pretty sure a human would get frustrated with the lack of hands or verbal speech.

Not that they aren't prepared for the even Guilmon develops enough and wants to try being human, after all, Chrome's managed to enchant an old coat of Takashi's on the other's behalf, to see if he couldn't 'dress' as a werewolf for an upcoming American style Halloween party that the retirees have decided to throw this year, which means that Flames can be used or perhaps, they are encouraged, to be used.

The change is a bit rougher then Kyoya's self enchantment into shape shifting but it's far smoother then what his dad does with his Sun Flames, when he was testing his own capabilities as he general keeps to transforming his nails or growing threatening spines about the knuckles. His dad's working on growing carapace plates over his chest and back for protection.

He's had to help remove said test results along with Fon's aid in loosing them from his dad's skin. All the while the curse man being very exasperated at his Sky's foolishness, although it likely does reassure the other that his dad is at least trying to create protective armour instead of use relying on Cloud Flames to reinforce the skin, muscle, and bones of the chest area as that does split the concentration of the User. Never know when an added layer of protection could save a life.

_Never mind that we all got ideas after watching Naruto during our latest sleep over._ He reflects with a touch of fond humour. After all, he's getting the hang of using his secondary, which is shockingly enough to be Earth Flames, to allow him to 'walk' on water. Then again, Guilmon's learnt to use Gravity to fly around. Having seen what Guilmon do that, it causes him to wonder if Enma's ever tested to see if he's capable of doing the same?

Hard to believe it but, well, dad hasn't really stimulated Guilmon's mental faculties at all, oh no, it turns out that he has been kind of doing that on accident, responding to Guilmon's yearning to connect better with his owner. Yes, his dad had done some enhancements but they had been more along the lines of promoting better growth of the body plus the age repairing blue print with minor changes to help stop fur shedding and growing new teeth to replace worn ones when needed. Which, his Sky Flames latched onto and help nudge the brain development to better understand the world around him.

_Accidents will happen, just deal with the results as best as you can._ He reminds himself. After all, Dino's horses had something going on with them, so it's clear that this issue didn't pop out of no where. That there's something about a Sky's Harmony that can and will affect animals, that it's not just humans, after all, isn't that what he did with the local birds? Still do?

Yes, he doesn't go out and feed them every day now, but they still seem to know when he's going to and they flock to the usual spot, waiting for him to get there. It's a time for bonding between Kyoya-senpai and himself, a time just for the two of them to spend together without any words needed. More then a few of those birds don't even haste to perch on a still Kyoya-senpai outside of that feeding event and he knows that it's something his Element treasures long before memories of Hibird or Roll returned, still treasures when it happens to this day.

The sounds of a familiar theme song play and he comes out of his musings to find that yea, Takashi decided to switch to online streaming after not finding anything viva channel surfing. "Since when were you an Otaku?" Hayato asks his Rain Guardian.

"Well, since our first sleep over at the Uyehara's house." Takashi admits as Fullmetal Alchemist episode begins once the song is over. Everyone had quiet down and had looked up at the TV once the song started.

"We tend to find an old Anime or American cartoon and binge watch it from the beginning to the end." Ryohei agrees. "The very first Anime we watched had Takato and Guilmon's namesakes in it."

"Which was?" Chrome asks while Mukuro stirs, he'll likely wake soon. "Digimon zero three or Digimon Tamers as it's also called." He admits in answer.

"Any good?" Ken asks curiously and those who have watched it back then all make agreement sounds. "It's not as black and white as the previous seasons of Digimon, it's a lot of shades of grey." His dad says.

"But the heroes win, I take it?" Chikusa asks this time. "Yes and no, if not for one of the movies, it ends on a sad yet hopeful note." His dad admits.

"You introduced them to it." Fon notes. "That's kind of a given, I didn't expect them to binge watch the whole show or the movies right watching the show." He had to agree, there hadn't been any arm twisting to make them continue to watch it. They had full control over the remote, yet, none of them wanted to even pause it or stop it to continue watching later.

Yet, it set the tone of any future sleepovers, it's not unusual for them to spend a few straight days and nights watching something the group had picked out, forgoing sleep unless they fall asleep from exhaustion, then it's time to stop it and go to sleep. They just had to make sure they had enough snacks and quick meals in stock before they had one of their sleepovers. They finding things to nitpick at a detail or plot hole. And if not doing that, they'd discuss how to go about mimicking with Flames or just teasing similarities of one of them to the character in the show.

It's usually happens at his house simply due to his dad having an idea of what they might like, acknowledging that they have different tastes then he but he will stick around, watching whatever they were. Which makes him a decent sounding board and sometimes tie breaker. If he gets a call, it's usually someone needing healing or some other kind of emergency that requires his attention and focus.

Since Chrome's been with them, they've only had the one where they watched Naruto, just the pre-time skip series. "To be fair, we only had the one where we watched Naruto since Chrome's been with us." He muses out loud.

"I thought that was because I wanted to watch it, not something you guys just did." Chrome admits and he gives his little sister a smile. "We did, because we decide to let you pick what we watched but we tend more towards older shows that are a few years old instead of more recent ones that are on going."

"So... We're going ahead with Disney's _Gargoyles_ or are we going to let our old, returning friends the next picks when we get around to having them?" Ryohei wonders.

"And pray tell, why would anyone make a show about carved statues?" Mukuro asks now more awake then before. The Mist moves from leaning on him to hunching forward a bit.

"There's a twist on Shakespeare's Macbeth, a race of beings that turn to stone during the daylight, magic, and vigilantism." His dad recalls. "It was Disney's answer to Batman the animated series, people say." Which they have been meaning to watch, just that none of them had been in the mood to watch an English show with that many seasons.

"How many seasons does it have?" Ryohei asks. They might have been told the answer before and merely forgotten it. "I want to say three, we could look it up to be sure." Is the answer.

"And are we watching?" Mukuro asks while a discussion begins about what they've seen. He glances at the TV once more, answering the question, "Fullmetal Alchemist. It's a story about a pair of brothers who committed a sin and now are looking for a way to restore the younger brother's body that was taken as payment for that sin." He adds, "By searching for the Philosopher's Stone or, as the English would call it, the Sorcerer's Stone."

"Alchemy." Mukuro states. "Why not just call it magic?"

"Oh, it's because it works on science principle of that world. It's about gathering up materials that would be used up along with energy from the alchemist. It destroys the materials, changes the properties, and then builds what the alchemist wants using the mental blueprints they project." Chrome recalls.

"You've been asking Kyoya-senpai for tips, haven't you?" He asks with a hint of amusement. "Actually, he just pointed the series out and suggested I read the theories fans come up with on how it works in the show." Chrome gently corrects him.

"You've got it working, haven't you?" Mukuro muses and Chrome nods. "It's the destroying or scraping the material that's hard but the process is very fast, which is likely do to the nature of Construction. The end product remains even without Mist Flames supporting it."

"I think it would be far harder on the creation process if it weren't for Construction helping to fill in my understanding of the how to impose my Will in shaping it to my satisfaction." Chrome admits. "It's not that far off from enchanting or creating a territory, actually, it just might be a territory in its own right, just more of an engine? It creating a flow for it to move through a series of steps within its boundaries." Their little sister tries to explain. "It can take a lot of Flames depending on the transformation, it's easier to take a stick and to turn it into a small wooden statue as it's base is still wood, just reshaped then to turn sand into a glass plate of the same weight due to the fact that the sand might not have everything needed to make the glass."

"But, why go through all the work when an illusion would be far easier?" Mukuro asks. Unlike him who kind of sees why such lengths would be of value.

"Because, I can install permanent enchantments or alterations from the start, ones that can't be removed with a flare of Flames meant to disrupt the effect that's been added. They were _built_ **in** which means they belong there. That there's nothing to remove as it was Constructed with that extra feature or function in mind." Chrome explains. "Oh, sure, they can be Disabled but not Removed."

"The Skylark's cloths." Mukuro muses thoughtfully. "I had wondered about it, how the lava hadn't burnt them when he was focusing on maintaining his transformed state."

"We tend to push the boundaries simply because we have the luxury to try." He admits. "A luxury that'll be vanishing soon enough." _Best make the most of it before it's gone._ He implies silently.

"You intend to return to your old throne." Mukuro notes. It's no question and he replies, "I have people among them who are friends and I won't abandon them just because I have the power to ensure I wouldn't need to bend to the Will of the Ninth or the rest of that generation."

"I hope to guide them out one day once they grow tired of crime, of watching the shadows looking for the bullet or knife. To give them a place to heal, where they can learn of their other opinions." He continues, his eyes upon Hayato. "That being a Flame User doesn't make one automatically a criminal and it never should have been so in the first place."

"One would call I would call you a Dreamer, yet, I think you'd take that as a complement." Mukuro says and he returns his attention on his newly returned brother. "Then again, people would say the same about curing the Arcobaleno of their Curse."

"You'd be right. I would." He agrees.

"Like they'd just let you and yours go that easily." Mukuro points out. "My dad has long since created the needed exit strategy, it's why he's barely a foot note in the Mafia world back when he was in his teens." He states glancing at his dad, watching as I-pin is now trying to resist temptation to poke Lambo awake.

"We'll need to go back to Italy soon." Mukuro states. "I doubt you'll want to take Lambo from his school or friends he's made."

"Mukuro, I have two words. Star Gate. Or is that one word in this case?" He wonders and Chrome, it seems, knows that could mean.

"No..." She says. "Yea, it's something Kyoya-senpai's help test before deciding having them litter the town just wasn't worth the cut on travel time. As they would only give him the one approach."

"It would need a secure location." Chrome notes and then realizes. "Of course you've have a site prepared. It's another office building I would bet too."

"Yea, we've also paid a number of Mists to add to it in a general process, we're hoping you'll take over as Master of the building." He says, looking at Mukuro. "We were just waiting for you guys to arrive and when you leave, have you transport the Gate."

"I would have thought you'd have another in mind for it." Mukuro says and he replies, "The post is more like being a land lord and security manager rolled in one. At the moment, the rooms are being rented by different people, so it's not like we'll be kicking them out any time soon to retake possession of the whole building."

"It's the basement that's going to be the Gate Room, right?" Chrome asks and he nods. "Yea, the basement has what dad considers to be the basics in terms of Mist Constructed security. So, you'll be able to modify it to your heart's content along with use the space how ever you want."

"This isn't the first I've heard of this special basement." The teenager remarks while using Mist Flames to create lily vines to snag something from the pile of snacks on the table that his dad has taken to keeping within the new staff room he's decided he needs now, if only as a place to store snacks and a variety of drinks for future visitors as he doesn't want to feed them any produce from the basement, and then reaching down for the drink nobody touched that's on the floor next to Mukuro's foot.

"We'll visit before we leave." He promises. The teenager hums as he sips his drink, eyes going back to the TV once more.

He does the same as it seems everyone to decide they had enough of talking for now.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He's leaning near the back door. Staring up at the night sky, not yet in tune with Japan time. A soft knock upon the door startles him a bit, it confuses him. "Mind if I join you, Hayato-kun?"

"It's your house." He retorts and the door, to his surprise didn't open. "That may be, but I rather hope my company was welcomed by the one I wish to speak with."

He blinks, that's a rather odd way for this to even begin, yet, he recalls some of what Takashi had said about Takato having not known if Takashi wanted his help during his period of Mourning. Which means that if he didn't want to have this discussion, he could just say so and the other would respect his wishes, leave him be.

_But do I want that?_ He asks himself and, on some level, yes, yes he did. He wanted to blame Takato for not being the same person, for not being there when his memories started coming back, for not _needing_ him.

_It's not his fault, that Takato hadn't a clue of who he's suppose to be or what his name should have been._ He stuck it out at home far longer in this Life then the last simply due to some simple, minor changed that had made life there more bearable. And a young Sky just showing up in the Mafia scene at the heart of Italy looking for his wayward Elements? When there's no guarantee they would even recall him?

And he hate's that he preferred it that it happened this way on a certain level, that his reincarnated Sky has a chance to grow strong before the Mafia even comes searching for him. The evidence that this teen has a fighting chance once the others begin waking up and gaining their own memories, coming to find their Don, ally/friend/little brother, and, of course, **their** Student. For on their heels will be the jackals and vultures, who will shadow those in hopes of scrapes.

The chaos that is coming on the horizon, those filthy scrape pickers will do their best to grab their own chances, trying to grab the seemingly helpless prize that the important people will be fighting over. For they will fight, it's a certainty when you put all those personalities in a room together for longer then a few minutes. They'll be far more focus on their rivals that they will forget that even scavengers can be bold and cunning when there's a shiny prize involve seemingly left along while the power houses fight.

Emotionally? He wants to rage and he's not sure there's even a clear target to channel it at. Not like before he came here.

"Fon?" He asks with a edge of bitterness. "Dad's."

"How?" He asks without thinking about it and Takato asks, "Well, you know how they are always going on how Sky Flames are special? That it's made out of all the other Flames being in balance?"

"They are wrong. Harmony is like Hardening to Lightning or Activation to Sun, which means that there can be people out there with it as a non-dominate Flame." Takato explains. "It's hard to see, when his Flames are out, it's like his Cloud hides it and if you see pass it, his Sun glares brightly trying to blind you."

"They appearance are like sparks from a campfire, that's really the only hint of his third even existing." Takato admits, "He uses his Sun to make it so people can't remember the color of the sparks. It's to the point he doesn't even this about it."

"Then how... He's the Strongest Storm! He should Bond with the Strongest Sky!" He exclaims a bit, cause from the sound of it, Kenji's Sky Flames shouldn't even be able to pull in a Guardian, let alone someone like Fon.

"They started Courting pretty much the moment they meet, Hayato-kun." Takato response. "Something about dad just, brought out the Storm in Fon."

"They'd have these silent contests that could last hours, where the first one to speak would be the loser." The Sky continues. "It was extreme, never mind how they'd butt head over how to best teach me how to be a Sky."

"He argued with Fon? He won those contests?" _How long was Fon been hanging around?_ He wanted to ask.

"Well, for one, dad tends to use Sun Flames to keep control over his biochemistry. So, he tended to counter the usual release of chemicals fear with flooding it with counters. Using Cloud Flames to have them linger longer in his system too." Takato explains and his mind is already considering what could go wrong yet, could also see the benefits.

"It just kind of begun from that and they just learn to live with one another. Fon letting his mask slip time from time, yet, dad just, didn't act like he should, just accepted it as reasonable response." Takato continues.

"They haven't been Bonded for long either but it's there. That seems enough for them to acknowledge that they are a Sky and Guardian." Takato muses. "It really came about when Fon realized he had a Home here and, just let down his defences. A touch was all it took for it to burn into existence, their words by the way."

"Is that why you've been keeping your distance?" He asks. "Hayato-kun, do you wish for me to join you out there?"

He blinks and turns to stare, the door is still there, still closed. "Please join me, Takato-kun." He says softly, touched at the show of respect, even if it annoyed him a little that this Sky hadn't just exited out of his own house to join him outside just because he wanted a polite invitation to do so.

The door opens and out walks Takato, who gently closes the door behind him. "So... When did Fon show up?" He asks curiously.

"Not long after I Bonded with Kyoya-senpai. I think he came to see what kind of Sky his nephew got attached too." Takato admits and adds after a bit, "I was six and I wanted a younger sibling. Dad explained that even if he started on that request by finding a woman and getting her with kid that day, it would be nearly ten months before I'd have said sibling."

"How did that lead to you Bonding with Hibari?" He asks, because, well, that's quite the leap of logic. _How do you get from wanting a little sibling to, well, the Skylark?_

"I was trying to get a train ticket when he showed up and said that it wasn't my responsibility to go get one. Then, well, I asked him if he was my Guardian and he responded by saying I was his to protect." Takato admits. "It just, made what we had solid after he said that."

"He was Latent, yet, he felt us Bond. Which my dad thought was more due to his secondary then his primary." The Sky adds.

"Which, in a around about why, bought someone kind of matching what you wanted." He can't help but observe and Takato blinks a bit, then chuckles a bit. "Well, he's not a baby, he's just Cursed or, among civilians, a shorter then average dwarf." That's a quote, likely from Kenji.

Although, that bit about them being dwarfs, well, it was more accurate then calling them babies just because they were on the same size scale as them. After all, babies just can't defend themselves, not like the Arcobaleno can and likely have had to do. He looks away from the Sky and looks off into the back yard.

"You don't need me." He finally states after a period of silence. He stirs as he feels a hand resting on his shoulder and glances into Takato's eyes.

"I don't need you like before, is what you mean. But you are not unwanted by who I am now. I have a slot for a slightly younger brother who's got a Stormy disposition, are you interested in filling it, Hayato-kun?" Takato asks, warm accepting eyes waiting content to wait for him.

He knows, knows that, all he has to do, is take the metaphoric hand that is being offered and, and he'll be Home once more. "Even after how I treated you back then? The trouble I caused? When I forced myself into your Life back then? Ignoring your request?" He finds himself asking.

"I cared about Hayato-kun back then, not the Right Hand of the Decimo. I always had." _Always will._ Those eyes promised. "I just didn't know the words to get you to see that."

"You're so different." He admits softly. "Your not the Tenth I remember." The hand moves and Takato approaches the railing, turning to lean on it as he remains the focus of the Sky.

"I know. Trust me, I am very much aware of it. There are time I can't help but this of my past self as someone else. I recall the lack of warmth that the Seal caused, how it slowed my thoughts, and how I couldn't help but feel as though the world as out to get me."

"It kind of was." He jokes a bit and Takato sighs. "Yes, but I shouldn't have felt like that in the first place, yet I did."

"Fucking bullies." He growls and Takato sighs, "It wasn't the bullies, it was Sky Attraction and the Seal hampering my growth as a person, slowing it. The bullies could have been dealt with by a parent and it should have been addressed by adults, it wasn't and so, with unattended approval, they pushed to see how far they could go before someone stopped them."

"Your... But she!" His mind whirls because, well, Sawada Nana had been a kind and welcoming woman. Plus, Tsuna had loved her and yet, here's the reincarnation saying...

"Nana developed Creep in this world. It is not unlikely that she had it back then." Takato allows. That chills him, he's remembers Shamal talk about such cases and he gets the impression they could get ugly, particularly if it's not treated right away. "She connected easier with anyone but her son. It was the same with my half sister, Jun. She just couldn't connect to her daughter on an emotional level."

"You have a half sister?" He asks, after all, nobody has mentioned her nor are there pictures. "Through Nana, yes and again, we run into the problem of trying to explain that to civilians, so, I've never met her but I know dad keeps an eye on her, wanting to be sure she doesn't develop it too, after all, there's no telling how it comes about."

"You ever going to met her?" And Takato winces, looking off to his right, towards the fence. "Sorry, I guess, well, she did remarry..."

"You... Kind of should have check on her current status. I'm... Going to have to tell Lambo this and I'm not looking forward to it, even Takashi took it kind of hard. Ryohei learn about it from dad." Takato rises his head up with his eyes close. Hands gripping the railing rather tightly.

"How big was the mess?" He finds the courage to ask and it takes time for Takato to reply, it's like ice speared his heart as the other says, "A petty power play is what is the most likely as she didn't Activate and with Creep, she thought she was talking with her previous husband who told her of a way for him to become alive again."

Takato doesn't continue for some minutes and it's a whisper when he looks at the wall of the house, "Kill her husband and eat him." He takes a few steps back with his eyes widening cause, that's... It couldn't be, he didn't want it to be true but, how can he call the other a liar when everything was different now?

"Did your... In front of?" He finds his voice and it's a harsh whisper. Takato shakes his head and he thanks god for sparing someone from seeing that.

"She's with his parents, her grandparents." Takato admits after some time. "So, no, I don't think I'll be approaching her. I rather recall her from the previous Life and that's easier if I don't in this one."

"But why?" He asks and glances at him, a bit of a void in his gaze. "She was the Widow of the Young Lion, who was supposedly of Primo's bloodline."

"Did they suspect...?" He asks and Takato sighs. "You didn't, why would anyone else? Besides, what did Iemitsu expect to happen? Marrying her without giving her a choice if she wanted to be a Mafioso's wife or not? That her innocence would save her?"

"It didn't, after all, that's how dad ended up with me, he used her to get to him." Takato admits. "Oh, I know what he did wasn't fair, using her like that but Iemitsu is the one ultimately responsible for taking her as wife. He could have found a wife back in Italy, one who knew what kind of work he'd be involved with and could, perhaps, prepare for threats to him viva her."

"He never gave Nana the choice to decide if she wanted to follow him into the shadows of mankind's criminal underbelly. He charmed her, bewitched her even, fed her sweet, honeyed lies..." There's ice in that tone. "It was the same story with in the last Life. Only, he consumed his own lies, forcing himself to believe that he's doing me a favour by getting the Ninth to place the Seal on me. That it'll keep his beloved Nana safe from Mafiosi by not coming home more to train me, that I was too young to start training, that the Seal was a shield, protecting his son from the horrors of the world."

"The Ninth knew better, only, he had three sons to serve as heirs and here's a Threat to that plan." Takato's smirk is fairly dark and filled with irony. "Only, the joke's on him, they die, one after the other, all old enough to take the reigns but he, like Iemitsu, consumed his own lies, telling himself that they need to become more settled before they are ready for the responsibilities of the Famiglia."

"Then it's the boy who he Crippled with a Seal that's the clear choice. It never crosses his mind to, you know, put effort into removing the Seal safely." And wasn't that something that Talbot had remarked when they asked him for help. That even a hole shattered in the Seal didn't make it was gone or that the shards weren't still lingering...

Then the dark humour drains and the Sky sighs, running a hand down his face. "Gods, thinking about it makes me wish Xanxus killed the Ninth during the Cradle Affair, in either Lives. Then one of them could have been ushered to fill the spot and the truth about his parentage could be told."

A lot of that negativity comes from justifiable reasons. "You've been holding that in for a while." He observes.

"I've talked about it with the others, just in different ways. Sometimes, they help give me a different way to view the events." Takato admits. "Even talking with dad helps, he also was kind enough to point out that being a free lance hit-man, Reborn couldn't teach me the Famiglia secret Traditions nor about any particular Family customs, the whys something was done this way and the origin of it that was likely a good story. You know, things someone growing up in the culture would know or expecting to happen."

"Ninth likely thought Iemitsu would have taught you or teach you later." He says, snorting softly at Iemitsu doing something that would have helped make life easier for the Tenth last Life. Yea, he grew up in such a house hold, so, he did get what Takato means about the difference about growing up into a Famiglia vs. joining one, he's had plenty of experience with that last Life. It's the little things that tip people off that you don't belong, that you are an outsider.

"Any new revelations to be have that you wouldn't mind getting off your chest?" He asks after some period of silence. Takato frowns as if trying to find the answers on the floor.

"I've talked with Fon and then I've talked with Takashi's dad about it before questioning my dad, cause it bugged me after while." Takato takes a breath. "After all, it helped Xanxus act out but, well, maybe the reason why he wasn't ever going to be happy with the state of things was, one a level, he knew the Ring Battles were rigged, that he never stood a chance at inheriting the Famiglia because he didn't have the Blood."

Takato pauses a bit, looking up at him, wanting to see his reaction about everything he just mentioned. "Which is what the Ring Battles are about, you know? Those with the Blood seeing who has the Might to inherit. Without the Blood, Xanxus had no Right to be put forward and that's likely what would always keep setting him off, why he couldn't forgive the Ninth for and, myself, how ever unknowing about the issue, for this subversion of the fundamental principle of the Ring Battles."

That's a punch in the gut, cause, it is crystal clear, that yes, that's what the Ring Battle had been about and how the Ninth and Iemitsu used it, to secure Tsuna's place as heir and thus, as Decimo, later Neo-Primo. That, by the Traditions of the Famiglia, the Ninth broke them by setting Xanxus up like that. "The Alliance, oh shit, if they had looked at it from that angle..."

The Ninth crossed The Line and nobody even noticed. Or thought it mattered. That set up a dangerous standard too by people allowing it to happen without a single protest. Cause, the loser of the Ring Battle swore an Oath to follow the victor, after all and by opening it to those who don't have the needed Blood, it would have turned every Ally Famiglia on the Vongola Famiglia out of concern for their own skins.

"He'll try it again, there's no reason why he wouldn't." He breaths out, his mind racing. "We can't let him!" Because he'd been Vongola once upon a time and he cared about it, even now.

"We won't, let them pick a Decimo candidate by actually doing some god damn research into the matter of succession. Xanxus came with us, it won't be that hard to help him remember and he'll pissed at not fighting against whoever it is put forth but he will see reason." Takato says and his eyes were glowing orange. "And I have the perfect bribe to sweeten the deal, too."

"And it is?" He asks. "Meeting the man who killed Sawada Iemitsu." Takato explains and he snort before laughing slightly, because, yea, he could see how appealing that would be. "Likely demand a fight too." He muses.

"I'm sure dad won't hurt him too much, might even heal him up just so it could be a proper fight." Takato's eyes return to normal. It's a while before the Sky speaks once more, "The offer stands, Hayato-kun. There's no rush and I won't rush you."

"You're so god damn polite, you know that?" He manages to find his voice to scold the Sky. He walks over and clasps arms with Takato. It's a rushing storm wind, sweeping their Flames towards one another and the Bond is a rush of winds whirling tighter and tighter, binding and braiding their Flames to create it until the winds couldn't slip between the Flames before rushing off to rage else where.

"That's... Wow... They never... I almost expected it to..." He stumbles through various words, yet none could explain it better then. "I'm Home."

"Yes, you are." Takato pulls him in for a quick hug and he pulls the teen in more, not wanting to let go right then. His Sky is fine with it and rubs his back in a soothing manner, doing his best to comfort him as the remains of Grief drain away.

End of the First Act.

**Author Note:** I can't believe it, I started this on Monday, January 15th and it's now Friday, January the 19th and I've typed out a good 101 pages of this according to Microsoft Word. I pretty much was listening to YouTube while typing away for hours on end.

Ok, right, well, the song lyrics that Mukuro heard? It's **Stolen Child** from Loreena McKennitt. Good song and I though highly appropriate given how this seed of a story began.

I'm pretty sure that there's a lot of you who'll find errors within but, I've done my best to keep the names correct.

Also, a show of hands who've figured out a parallel between Kenji of this story and a certain religious figure? I swear, it only crossed my mind just this Friday what I had done yet, well, head canon is that humans have been toying with Flames since they discovered they had them. It's just recently, Flame Users have began growing their own communities again just so happens that it gets connected to the rise of organize crime, intertwining to the point it's just easier to just label all Flame Users as belonging to the Criminal Underworld then trying to out grow their roots as it were.

After all, doing what's right and what's easy? It's the nail that sticks out that gets hammered down and if it's not the various Famiglia doing the hammering then it's the Vindice being a sledge hammer, hitting not just the one that sticks out but also those around it.

As for Kenji sporting Sky Flames, well, in real life, elephants have been hunted so much for their tusks that they're breeding for the lack of them. Same can be said about those possessing Sky Flames, that due to generations of hunting among the populous, it mutated in order to avoid notice, after all, we're told that Sky Users are rare and they're numbers just seem to be dropping, we learn that all three of Nono's sons died, they had been adults yet, it doesn't appear that any of them were married or perhaps it's more that any kids they had just didn't inherit their father's Flames.

Those with singular Sky Flames can't produce enough kids while the mutated population is surviving not getting noticed, thus they are marrying and having kids. Evolution is at work in among Flame Users, they just don't know it's happening or want to accept that it's possible as it goes against their ideology.

Yes, it's harder for these mutates to Court and Bond with other Flame Users, after all, evolution is showing that those who gather Courts of Elements are the ones that attract attention and the mutants don't want that, it's now something of a death sentence in evolutionary terms. Courtship would be a long process but would involve a great deal of trust between the parties involved. It's unlikely they'll ever have more then a pair of Bonded in their lives.

Huh, better start the second arc. Enjoy the second arc of this seemingly novel length Fan fiction. 102 page Here.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He wanders the streets of Namimori, he'd been offered a simple job from Viper, who had finally decided to contact him viva text message. Some doctor by the name Uyehara Kenji seem to have organized the retirees of the town to a certain degree. Had been for years now, it's just, well, now that the Vongola Famiglia have named their heir, the Alliance wanted to a formal investigation of the happenings and what plans this supposed doctor has, he checked, the man actually did have a legal medical degree and medical licence , not that such matters among the criminal world as it's a civilian education.

Which they had approached Viper, likely paying a shit ton of money for the Mist Arcobaleno to put out said job offer. Yet, the fact that the other had directed the offer to him, well, what's written between the lines suggest that Viper has found it hard to spy upon this man nor did the Mist want to approach Fon, given that the Storm actually LIVES with this Sunny Cloud. Not trusting Fon not to tip Kenji off so that the man could prepare for someone to come sniffing around his business.

There's no former hit man matching Uyehara Kenji's current appearance nor name. Yet, the man is a Flame User so he had walked the dark alleys as any other no name Mafioso, it just one has to wonder if there's a long term plan going on, that this man has a backer somewhere in his shadow. There must be a trail of bodies somewhere that this man left behind him.

The nobody has yet to manage to enter into the criminal underbelly that exists and leave it without blood on their hands and not broken in some way from the things they've done or have seen. Then again, this man has been living in Namimori since the birth of his son, one Uyehara Takato, who's to be fifteen in about twelve days time, if the birth records were indeed genuine.

It's clear that the man's secondary influences this Kenji fairly strongly, why else would the man take the post of the go to doctor among the locals? As for the whole organize the retirees? Well, some Clouds do collect people, claiming them willing or not as under their protection. Again, it depends on the Cloud and how those they gather relate to their Territory.

So what, if it's a little strange if Viper can't spy on the man? There's Mists among the retirees and it's not that hard to imagine the Cloud paying them off to set up wards at his office building or home for his peace of mind concerning he has a son who he's likely very protective of. With Viper all the way in Italy, it could be distance being a thing along with the accurse pacifier limiting the other.

No, there's another reason why it's him that Viper wanted to investigate and it's likely got nothing to do with what ever the Alliance wants. No, that's just a convent excuse to send someone here, but he'll wager that it is something that does involve the doctor. Now what would a doctor have that Viper wants something from?

Another Arcobaleno in town, here to visit Fon? Yes, the retirees can believe that and likely to get him through the front door of the good doctor's house. _Then again, once the civilian hear that I'm a friend of Fon's, they actually took a moment to look at me. Then, it's like they got what they were looking for and start treating me like an adult. Just what have you done to get them to treat people our size like that?_

It's a unique experience and yet, his mood hadn't been lifted by the treatment. It should have, he would have liked it to have, yet, his mood had only seem to have grown darker since he arrived. The feeling of being watched was there, yet, he's yet to spy his watcher, which means whoever it is, is very good. He's done his best to shake that feeling all day since he arrived at the train station, yet his tricks failed.

He even tried to see if whoever it is was using Mist Flames to track him by Flaring his Sun Flames to over activate the Mist Flames that were around him. Nothing and now, it's evening and he doesn't want a hotel room, which leaves him to try playing Fon's Fellow Arcobaleno here for a visit, even though the Storm won't be back in town for about nine days.

So, with his watcher in toe, he sets off for the doctor's house. As he approaches does he feel the tell tale signs of a Mist Territory. _Oh yes, the so called niece is a Mist._ He recalls from the official records. A recent addition along with a young girl named I-pin, although Fon's the listed as the adopted parent with Kenji and his son listed as emergency contacts, it had been surprising hard to find that little fact and he can't wait to tease the Storm about it and suggest that Lal and him arrange play dates for their respected adoptees.

It's rather odd though, that this Kenji made sure to keep everything above board in legality. Or not, given that the man also has some patents to his name, so he's generating funds in legal circles thanks to a particular odd company that's cropped up that's allowing young inventors among the Mafia lower ranks to earn funds through creating harmless patents that didn't overall change the lives civilians overly much, thus why it's been allowed to continue by the Vindice as it doesn't reveal anything Flame related.

There's barking upon Leon transforming to allow him to ring the bell before the lizard climbs up onto his shoulder, surprising him by giving his cheek a rub before the door opens by Takato, who's holding the family pet back. Guilmon is the dog's name and is surprising spry for such an elderly dog. Or not if Kenji's been testing different applications of Sun Flames have on increasing life expectantly.

"Hello, I'm Uyehara Takato, how my I help you?" The teen asks politely and for a moment, he can't help but start into those eyes, noting that there are flicks of orange in those hazel eyes. It's, odd, that he finds it hard to breathe for a few seconds then the moment passes as Takato breaks their gazes to look down at the dog. "Guilmon, please. It's just a friend of Fon's. No need to make such a fuss."

The dog pouts but in the end, sits down before looking over at him. He's wits return to him and he nods. "Chaos, Takato-kun. Is he here? I'm Reborn, the World's Greatest Hit-Man."

The teen smiles and he can't help but return it slightly. "I'm sorry to inform you that he is not but, well, do you have a hotel room? If not, well, you could spend the night in Fon's room." Takato opens the door, allowing him in.

He takes the unspoken invitation feeling the Mist Flames part with the feeling that as long as he's not going to attack anyone living here, he's welcome inside. The door closes and Guilmon surges forward, sniffing him before giving him a lick.

Then, to his surprise, Leon climbs from his shoulder onto the dog's muzzle. The dog goes cross eye, staring at the chameleon as his animal companion continues until he's resting on Guilmon's head, near the black markings upon the dog's head. Then Guilmon gets to his feet and walk off, carrying Leon away with him. There's no running or barking, just a quick trot with the tail wagging only a bit.

"Don't worry, he's good with Lichi, he'll be extra careful given the size difference." Takato assures him. Given the lack of usual canine playfulness when one of them has a new toy, he believes the teen.

He slightly inclines his head as the teen begins to walk towards the kitchen, he notices the smallest size slippers and considers whether he should do the polite thing. After a bit, he does so, after all, there's no reason to be rude, not when the teen had been ever so polite.

With that done, he wanders towards the living room where there's a wall of pictures. Leaping upon the couch, he studies the photos. There's only one picture of this twenty something woman, who's clearly pregnant and he assumes is the boy's mother. Then there's pictures of a baby and ones of a late teenager holding said babe, the same shade of brown with the exception of the bangs and sporting violet eyes. _A young, single father._

The pictures continue to tell their tale, the baby becoming a toddler then a child. The family pet begins to feature about the boy being six years old and the dog start arrives as a puppy, a pet for the energetic six year old. No pictures of any girlfriends and Fon begins to appear along with a photo of a young boy who sports similar looks to the Storm. This boy only seems to appear rarely and it's clear that this dark haired and eyed boy is humouring the younger, brighter boy in getting his picture taken.

_So, Fon had ties here before settling down._ He notes passively as he examines the latest picture of said boy, now a young man. Returning to one of the earlier photos, he notices that the father seems to not age a day once they are in their early twenties, for there's not much of a change between the father of then to the one of now, save for the age in the eyes.

Around the age of ten, two new faces begin to show and they raise the hairs of the back of his neck far more then the young man sharing Fon's features. One sporting hazel eyes and short dark hair, a playful smile relax features. The other is an older boy who sports white hair along with gray eyes... And something is screaming at him that this expression is wrong, Wrong, WRONG!

The eyes were far too calm and mellow in body language. He also searches about the face, not sure what he's looking for only that, there are certain tells missing. After a while, he pushes it away, reminding himself that this is the first time he's ever seen these pictures nor has he ever met any of the boys save for Takato. _I don't even know there names after all._

Then the girl appears, Chrome, looking shy and frail. _Never judge the book by its cover._ He reminds himself, after all, the Mist Flames about him are a testament that the girl dangerous and skilled in their use. After that one, it's clear that she begins to shed some of that shyness and put on some much needed weight. There's one where she's on Kenji's back with Takato hanging an arm over Kenji's shoulders, who's leaning down to allow this, all three smiling brightly. _A good father, clearly beloved by both._

It's clear that all are happy, content, and trusting with one another. There's a group photo with I-pin and Fon with the collection of boys, young girl, the dog, the parents of one the boys with the wife glowing in the way only pregnancy allows a woman to, and, of course, Kenji, all at some festival so they were wearing formal wear that the Japanese are so fond of.

Then there's a series of photos featuring various previous subjects dressed in costumes. Takato is dressed in a blue hoodie along with shorts with a pair of goggles upon his forehead, eyes sporting a red hazel glint in this light. Hair appearing far shorter, less spiky then he usually has it. Clearly bemused in the expression yet the eyes show he's a tad resigned about something.

The dog sports crimson fur with white belly along with black markings, the eyes looking a far more reptilian along with their yellow being far more noticeable. They manage to capture the dog leaping, displaying something that, it takes him a bit to realize, looks like a bio hazard symbol on the chest. The head looking straight at the camera.

The next photo has Chrome dressed up as a spell caster of some sort. Dark robes sporting a hood with indigo trim along with white threads used to create Celtic knot designs around the sleeves and seams, clearly embroidered, perhaps hand stitched. Circling the head is a necklace crown with amber gems and tiny lily flowers. Of course, she's got a staff leaning in her arms, it's brown and it's carvings are in keeping with the Celtic knot design and it appears to be sporting gem stones along its length, likely illusions casted by the young girl. There's a touch of shyness, perhaps due to her current dress and seeming finery?

It's the white haired boy with gray eyes, only those eyes are gold in this picture. The cloths are a close black body suit along with a red cloak sleeves and an almost skirt about the waist, they could be called that. Hanging from the belt are a pair of swords, white and black yet identical looking single edge that seem curved. Arms crossed and the expression is highly serious and aloof.

Once he finds it in himself to look away, the next picture reminds him of a poster for an American movie. _Teen Wolf._ The title comes to him, it helps that there's a basket ball under the arm. It's hard for him to tell that it's make up or a Mist illusion that's covering the boy. Each finger sports a claws, talons almost, that were very over sized giving how big the hands are. The fur did look fake yet, its color matches the actual hair and the rips in the jeans also show fur, just not sticking out.

He coughs in his hand at the sight that greets him with the next, after all, with the exception of hair color and clearly Japanese features, the teen in the photo could be mistaken as the original Cloud Guardian of Don Primo of the Vongola Famiglia. The dress is period and on the belt are the handcuff that had been Alaude's signature weapon. If he ever runs into the young man, he's going to have trouble not remembering this picture, he just knows it.

_Worst if he turns out to be a Cloud to boot. Yea, but what are the odd of two Clouds co-existing outside of the Varia?_ He tells himself. After all, the owner of this house he's in is a confirmed Cloud primary and neither the teen in the photo or the doctor look like they've maimed each other.

"You take your coffee Italian style? Or would you prefer something else to drink?" Takato calls from the kitchen and he blinks, thinking about it for about a second before answering, "Italian style would be preferable." _Espresso better but I doubt you know how to make a decent one._

"Dad sometimes likes his coffee in that style, so he's taught me how too. Not sure if it'll be to your liking though." Takato says and he tilts his head so he can look off in the direction of the kitchen. "Fon prefers Tea as do I." Of course he does.

He doesn't answer and it sounds like his current host is making him his drink. He returns to reviewing the photos. This one has two in the picture, one of whom is Fon and the other is likely I-pin. They were in matching out fits with the young girl sporting red hair with a pigtail while Fon's braid seem shorter. There's a stuff baby pig with a bandana that's yellow with black tiger strips in the child's arms. _Cute, I guess._

The final photo is of Kenji who's dressed in very simple black men's kimono. There's a fairly large, clearly fake sword on the back. It's not as impressive nor memorable as the others taken that night, yet there is a meaning to the costume, one he likely just doesn't know about.

The next ones were of the same vein as before, only how the one teen with hazel eyes is sometimes with a babe, a little sibling given the woman having been pregnant. There's photo of Takato and this teen laying on the floor with a sleeping toddler resting near their heads, it's clear it was taken after the two had been babysitting and had become exhausted from the job. Takato's eye's are half open and tired strained look being aimed at whoever is taking the picture while his fellow teen is fast asleep.

The wall of photos, it's shows the good moments, displays the happy times that have happened to those living here. It's a surprising touching collection that could likely be found in any family's home. Yet, there's a sense that... This is all surreal, that it's like an illusion of normalcy.

After all, three members are on record for being Flame Active with one still activate in the criminal world, one likely to slip into the shadows if she isn't involved already, and a man who is the go to doctor for the retired and broken former Mafioso and free lance killers. The question seem to be, what plans does Fon have I-pin? And is Takato aware of their involvement in organized crime?

After all, with a Mist around, Kenji might have done his best to keep his son out it, maybe having Chrome cloud Takato's mind. "You have quite the collection of friends."

"Yea, I do." Takato agrees with a smile as the teen brings him his coffee in a cup that suits him. "Although, despite Yamamoto-san and dad's organizing the retirees to keep the Yakuza passive by subtle means, I never really meet Takashi until he approached me about his dad's behaviour and dodging his questions."

"You know." He states as he takes the cup. "Asked about mom when I was five. You can still see the finger grooves on the table."

He stares hard at the teen, not really sure how what to think. "Parents tend to say the phrase, when your older in these things." _Not flat out tell their five year old kids what they once did for a living._

"Dad... he made it a policy to be honest with me, it became a habit of his with me." Takato answers. "I was young, I didn't understand it that well but, well, I knew my dad was in pain and he feared my reaction. I think by telling me, it helped him start to heal, that he kept true to something he set out for himself."

"You still love him? Even after everything he's done?" He finds himself asking with a hint of disbelief. After all, why should any parents want to gamble with their kid's love and acceptance? _Kenji Uyehara, from the sounds of it._

"I think you just answered your own question." Takato remarks with a fond smile. "My dad's not perfect, nobody is and I think I read somewhere that it's overrated to boot."

He snorts ever so slightly and takes a sip, finding the cup of coffee to be slightly better then decent. Takato glances and Guilmon trots towards the door, he spies Leon still on the dog's head. "Looks like Chrome and dad are home."

"I-pin?" He asks, seeing there no point in not showing he knows who also lives here. "She's in her room, she has her a Do Not Disturb sign on the handle so she's likely got her head phones on. I'll text her once the food's on the table."

Takato turns as the lock on the door clicks and the doctor plus niece call out greetings while Guilmon becomes more excited. Takato returns the greeting before introducing himself to the two arrivals. "Chrome, dad, this is Fon's co-worker, Reborn the World's Greatest Hit-Man. Reborn this is Dokuro Chrome and my dad, Uyehara Kenji."

"Welcome to my humble home." Kenji welcomes him while Chrome just ducks her head before she's done getting her jacket off and changing to slippers. She takes her book bag and hurries off.

"I-pin is in her room?" Kenji asks he bends out and begins to give Guilmon some attention. "Well, hello, you must be Leon then?" Kenji remarks to his chameleon upon noticing Leon on the dog's head. "Has Guilmon given you the house tour yet?"

Guilmon huffs at the question and Kenji gives the dog a chin scratch before a neck rub and withdrawing his hand. "There's more to the house then your dishes or Takato's door." The man converses with the dog as though the canine is capable of having a conversation in the first place. "One would think you'd remember that, after how long you've lived here." Kenji remarks in clear amusement and Guilmon turns up his nose while walking into the living room, coming to him.

"Suit yourself." Kenji remarks with a slight shake of his head. The doctor glances at him, there's a bit of a guarded look in those eyes, which makes a certain amount of sense, after all, he is considered the Strongest Sun and the World's Greatest Hit-Man. "Don't let him sucker you into the backyard. He's grounded for another few days."

Guilmon's eyes pretty much scream, who, me? He rolls his eyes, he's not much for dogs, so he sees no reason to take the dog anywhere. He offers a hand and after a few seconds, instead of sniffing it like any other dog, Guilmon moves under the hand, allowing Leon easier access to climbing back onto him. _Smart dog. Perhaps a bit more enhanced then just extending his life. Likely doubling as the house security along with keeping the kids company._

With that, Guilmon flops onto the floor before the couch. Chrome returns and joins him on the couch, although with some distance between them, going for the remote. He settles himself on the couch's arm and is content to just observe in silence as Chrome brings up recordings and selecting one of the titles, going to the earliest one, it begins to play.

He hears dishes coming out while smelling the state of dinner. Takato heads off after a few minutes and he notes which room belongs to the boy from the sound of his foot steps. Kenji likely finishing up the final touches.

Within a few minutes, a door opens and someone with lighter steps approaches. He gets his first look at Fon's adoptee in the flesh. "Hello, I'm I-pin. It's a pleasure to met one of Sifu's co-workers." And once he returns the greeting and introduces himself, she nods and then heads for the table.

The TV pauses and Chrome gets up, Guilmon doesn't stir from his position. Then it sounds like Takato is coming back down. He sighs at empty cup, wishing it had lasted longer even if it wasn't his beloved espresso.

Getting up, he leaps from the couch and walks into the kitchen. It takes him a second to realise what the hand holds were for before ignoring it and leaping easily with some Sun Flames onto the counter, walking to the sink only to find a pot of coffee waiting with something keeping it from going cold.

"Do you mind if I pour myself more?" He asks Kenji. After all, if they made a pot for him, why not drink it?

"You need to use a bit of Flames to have the field go inactive. Just place it back on the cloth and the field will reactivate." _Which, means that there's four instead of the listed three._ He realizes, although, he admits, this was more likely something Chrome enchanted as practice, handy and something that's practical while giving Chrome practice in her use of Mist Flames.

_A young Sun perhaps? Hmm, maybe a Rain..._ He muses as he does just that. While it would be a host's duty to see to the guest's needs, Kenji's busy with dinner and he had asked if he could help himself.

He pokes the pot and there's a shimmer in the air. With ease, he pours into the cup and then watches as the field shimmers about the pot, keeping it from cooling. Smiles as the steam slowly rises from the hot liquid.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

Something pokes at him as he swims through memories, trying to dimly get a clearer picture of where he is, why he's here, and what's he to do next. There's a sense of irony in that the man he hated so much in two Lives died in his latest, it he's giddy at the fact that it hasn't even been a glorious end to be remembered in the line of duty to the Famiglia, it ended in a bed and with something eating at the bastard's very DNA!

_Pathetic end to a blow hard, waste of space._ He says to himself. Yet, without the fucking trash, there's no trashy brat to find as it seems that fucking trash didn't plant his seed like he was suppose to. The one thing the baying trash did right the first time, he screws up the second.

He is fucking done, he doesn't want shit to do with the old fart or his fucked in the head generation. He's not going to clean up the mess the bastard still has made of the Famiglia nor help in securing the position of whoever they find to take up the throne as Decimo by being used like that again. He's done caring, he's just done!

He's being nudged now, he doesn't see the point in fighting it. He lacks the Will to do anything but float through his memories, all three sets, from the first Life, the Future that Never Was, and this second Life. The memories around him, they are of that fucking town in Japan now.

Moving through them, he wonders a bit about the trashy brat's Guardians. Which leads him to his own small collection and his Varia. He watches the farce that was the Ring Battles. He did his research later, his own instincts having screamed at him to do this the moment the old fart asked him to test the trashy brat but his anger ruled him, rage at the state of his body, the time he lost encase in that fucking technique, and at the knowledge that the fucking baying fucker's trash son was now to be Heir, a fucking civilian who hadn't even been fifteen years old until the end of the battles!

A brat who didn't grow up in the underworld, hadn't even been aware of his connection to the greatest Famiglia of Italy until he was given the position of Heir on a god fucking damn silver platter! Hadn't even known he had Flames under he was fourteen or could use them properly without a bullet to the fucking brain from the self proclaimed World's Greatest Hit-Man. So, fuck yea, he didn't any time to follow the lead of his instincts and by the time he finally did, he regretted it and hated his Pride for keeping his fucking mouth sealed on the matter.

The trashy brat had improved and in time, shown that he'd have the makings of being a decent Don, never mind how trash started hailing him as the second coming of the Primo. Which meant that the president that the Ninth set, passed unnoticed and even when word of his adoption did finally break, none had done their god damn research, so none knew of the fucking situation, then again, there had always been something to distract himself, for him to push the knowledge from his mind for a time.

The trashy brat, he was who the Famiglia needed to run it and then, then the shattering of that god fucking Seal cause up to him. And the knowledge that the trashy brat had been Sealed at five years of age spread. You just don't put that kind of Seal on a kid. What was the fucking fart thinking back then?! And to a fucking SKY at that!

They gambled, yea, the trashy brat hadn't wanted them to follow him or to do it in the first place. Said they'd had lives before he showed up in their lives, said they could live on without him in their lives. Could have, yes, but wanted to? Oh Fuck No!

The memory plays, of the warning the marshmallow trash mentioned. _Wait, what?_ He mentally replays that again and then again, he's unsure of how many fucking times he reviews it, doing his best to pick out all of the warning he heard but hadn't listened too.

_Oh... Oh, well, this changes things._ He thinks to himself, his anger and rage stilled as he floats away from the memory. He glances around and notices what's been poking and nudging him.

With a smirk, he grabs the thread of indigo. _'Finally ready to wake then? He's in Namimori.'_ The Mist tells him, confirming the conclusion he finally concluded on him from his memory.

The thread then pulls him through the memories and he See his way out. With a roar and ignites his Flames, no longer needing the trash's help now. He hits and funnelling every bit of Rage, Hatred, and Need into his Wrath Flames, the frozen Harmony shatters.

Suddenly, he's got a body and within minutes, his Mist Officer appears with more Officers. "Namimori, get me to Namimori!" His voice doesn't roar as he wish but he's Flames ensure they'll follow through with this demand.

"BOSS!" He hears his shark cry out before his body's condition over takes him.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He's been here for a good four days now and the pattern of the house hold differs in who arrives home first along with what's made. Given that everyone has a cell phone, it's likely they do text each other about updates to what's what with them. His focus had also shifted from the father to the son, it hadn't been much to find papers at the house or at the building that Uyehara owns.

He's also followed the retirees did their 'tours' and learnt of the simple strategy they employ to keep the local Yakuza gang from claiming the town for themselves. After all, if something is boring and uninteresting, why would anyone really invest time into, you know, checking any oddities that hint that it's really not. They subtly encourage the sloth of the members and any who were too hot headed, well, they are directed out in a similar fashion, encouraging them to head for 'greener' pastures where there's more opportunities to make a name for themselves.

The result? Namimori is still neutral ground, although he's a bit angry that there's no presence from the Vongola Famiglia here to report back to the main family about the happenings of their supposed ownership of Namimori. Oh, sure, they are visited regularly by a pair of Varia Officers but it's not the Varia's duty to do anything in regards to maintain Vongola Famiglia's interests in Namimori and it sounds more like they come for the sushi one Tsuyoshi Yamamoto creates then for any official reason. Which means Namimori was to remain a retirement community and neutral ground, Kenji had to talk some sense and reason into the various Flame Users about keeping the Yakuza from expanding into the town by subtle means.

So, no, there's no sinister agenda going on among the retirees, just them taking their safety and their respective families into their own hands. That they had been force to admit that the Vongola Famiglia don't have Namimori as much of a priority. Many of them had also started to spread their metaphorical wings a bit when it comes to practicing with their Flames in harmless ways along with some selling their slightly useful practice results among each other or bartering favours.

All happening due to one doctor managing to break through their apathy about involving themselves in doing anything save self defence. Rousting them enough for them to see what's happening and making suggestions that wouldn't draw the ire of the Vindice or attention by the young punks who think Namimori was ripe for the taking. Reminding them that this could grow worst enough to effect the well being of their current love ones.

The people weren't as broken as they once had been either. Wounds that never quite healed right, well, the doctor can help with that for a reasonable price and a few months of taking special herbal remedies. Don't want to go to the dentist to deal with a tooth? The doctor can help your body in growing a replacement before yanking the bad one out. Want to have another kid? Oh yea, he's better then any fertility clinic.

The man is a walking example of what Sun Flames can do when used properly. He's teaching one Ryohei Sasagawa all the tricks and the teen is also now trusted to help with the practicing at the clinic slash office building, sure it's illegal but, well, they were criminals. It seems that the young man had also one had Creep, only for Kenji to treat it. There's been at least two more cases and he's successfully treated them both and then the retirees talked among themselves about who'd teach the kids how to use their Active Flames.

It's a mix of enlighten self interest and actually giving a damn about the community at large. There's a few unofficial authorities for any given situation, after all, shit happens and you need to deal with the mess as quickly as possible. So the doctor is the medical expert, Tsuyoshi is something of an event planner, which makes sense as everybody knows him, plus he's got Flame infused sushi which is a delightful treat, and another is something of a gate keeper for the community, who's name is one Kyoya Hibari, who just happens to be a Misty Cloud with strong Classic nature. Which means that yes, Namimori is home to TWO Clouds and them are not in Conflict.

From what little gossip that generated, a few are giving credit to Takato being the source. Some just put it down to them having different Territories as the reason. A number think it's just the fact that Kenji never let it come to that and that the pair had come to some kind of agreement back when Kyoya had been Latent and they're keeping to that.

As for himself, well, he'll admit, there's something about Takato that make it possible that he's the reason for the strange peace. The teen, well, he's kind. He also takes after his father in a lot of regards, even if he's yet to confirm what Flame type he is. He's putting his money on Sun, for clearly, it's the most influencing Flame in the father as the man is social along with the simply fact his got a medial degree plus a license to practice, in his opinion, it stands to reason that the son would inherit it.

"Cursed Carnivore." He jerks from his hiding spot and looked down to find Kyoya leaning against the wall below him. "Stalking?" _Really?_ He hears.

"I like mysteries." He answers after waiting a few minutes, expecting the impatience of a Classic Cloud to get the better of the young man. _This is truly Fon's nephew._ He thinks sourly.

"You already have the answers." Kyoya states in a matter of fact tone. "Continue stalking and I will bite you to death." The Cloud walks away without another word.

The phrasing of that statement, it strikes a cord within him. His vision begins to waver and then, a roar brings forth a series of blurry images play out of this Cloud being younger and far more violent then this Kyoya has displayed. He closes his eyes as his head pounds while his heart clenches in his breast while he tries to fight the pull of the imagines.

A whimper escapes him and he finds that he's been crying as he regains control of himself. He feels Leon trying to comfort him, yet didn't know how beyond nuzzling him with his body. He feels worst now then when Fon mentioned that name and he's not sure of the source of this sorrow and longing.

He sits there, staring off at nothing, he calls what the Cloud had said before the threat. _"If I had the answers, would I really be here searching?" _He mutters in Italian.

Leon's tongue shoots forth and lands on the tip of his nose. He smiles at his animal companion as the tongue withdraws. He scratches Leon's chin as he collects himself.

So, he mentally puts together everything he knows of Takato and then does his best to set aside his own personal opinions as best as he can. "Fact, Takato is a surprisingly kind for a teen his age. Far more then could be contributed to upbringing." He states to Leon.

"Fact, Takato has orange flecks in his eyes." He recalls how he almost got lost in those eyes. There was just something holding him in place.

"Fact, Takato has a large range of friends. They range through most of the Flame types." He states and frowns, but does his best to push it aside for now.

"Fact, Takato has known about Flames since age five." Not unusual for kids growing up in Famiglias. "Fact, the mother left him likely as soon as he was born. Leaving him to be raised by his father."

"Fact, Takato was born here in Namimori." He found the original birth records, only difference had been the last name plus names of the parents. "Fact, Takato befriended Kyoya at a young age." That seems to be a very important fact to keep in mind in regards to the Cloud, after all, they can get attached to people, it just takes them a while to admit it.

"Fact, Takato only started becoming friends with Takashi after a period of Grief that started the moment he Activated." That fact did still circle the gossip circles and there's evidence that before being Active, the boy had been obsessed with baseball. It was a very noticeable change in behaviour and one that stayed changed. Exchanging the baseball bat for a bamboo sword, he's gone on to win his share of tournaments in Kendo.

"Fact, Takato befriended Ryohei about the same time as Takashi." He gets the feeling Ryohei had something to do with Takashi and Takato becoming friends. It's just this gut feeling, really, then again, the two had been in the same class long before doing so.

"Fact, Takato loves his father." And it's clear that Kenji loves Takato. Oh, sure they've had one minor verbal spar since he's been here, so it's clear that Takato's very much an average teen but their cool down period is shorter then should expect. They also seem to have agreed on some lines that they both agreed not to cross.

Both have a surprising amount of self control when it comes to how much they know they can safely press. They also tend to head to their respective rooms to clear their heads. He half expected that they were continuing their argument viva messaging each other if not for finding their respective cell phones in Chrome's possession, explaining she had their permission to take them when they haven't patched things up. Along with putting up a ward to keep them from doing so viva their respective other devices until they convince Chrome to give them their cell phones.

"Fact, they found Chrome during their Kyoto trip and brought her home." The girl likely Activated and then ran away from her home life. The local Yakuza had run ins with the young Mist, at first not knowing what she was and then trying to recruit her by any means, capturing her before breaking her in. Only, they report a demon interfered and sweep her off to parts unknown.

They have conflicting reports about the whole incident, some saying it was a trick by the slip of a girl while others wonder if she hadn't been rescued by an actual Yokai that claimed her as a future bride. All of Japanese organize crime were on the look out for the girl, yet, they haven't noticed her living in Namimori, under the noses of the Momokyokai Group.

"Fact, Kenji remained in Namimori for the trip. Fact, Kyoya was on said trip." So the doctor wasn't the one to find the girl and the younger Cloud had actually left his Territory for those three days.

And if it were Kyoya who found the young Mist, that only raised more questions, after all, why would the Cloud be looking for her in the first place? It's not like the Yakuza of Kyoto wanted it spread around that they found a Flame User, so hearing it from the Momokyokai Group is out.

Before he can get to the next logical reason for why a Cloud could be lured out of their Territory, his cell goes off. He ever so calmly reaches for it and says in Italian, _"Viper."_

_"The doctor?"_ The Mist inquires. _"The walking example of what Sun Users can be when it comes to the healing Activations."_ He states with a touch of disinterest. _"Example, he can Activate the growth of a new tooth."_

_"As for the retirees, Vongola need to acknowledge the reason why they're organizing themselves in the first place and step in if they wish to keep ownership of Namimori."_ He mentally adds,_ But, you likely already knew that._

_"Is that all?"_ Viper asks. _"I've got a lead that I'm investigating. Will report once I am certain."_ He says. The line dies and he stares at the phone, feeling that something he said was what the Mist wanted to hear and to confirm.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"It's confirmed, he's capable." Mammon reports once the cell is away. He lets a blood thirsty grin spread and looks at the front door of the building that their target owns.

_"Voi! Finally! Let's get this fucking show on the road!"_ He exclaims, eager for what's to come. After all, the man is a Cloud, he won't be going down without a fight and he's been wanting one ever since this mess began.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

_Voi! I've been cheated! Damn fucking trash just had to be reasonable and come along willingly._ He thinks as the man known as Uyehara Kenji is taking stock of the Boss's condition, there's a lot of frost burn and Lussuria had done what he could, but, well, the Sun Officer had already put forth this guy as the one who'd be better at treating the Boss when they had been planning to break him free in the first place.

"We need to get the clinging foreign Harmony off, it's nature is hampering his body's attempts at normal function." The local doc reports. "Is your partner here? He's Storm Flames would help attack the anchors without harming your Sky's own Flames."

The doc is looking at Mammon, it's then the little tidbit about the pair visiting this town for a certain sushi bar is true. "He's got his orders." He states. "He's out of the ice, though."

"It's not just a physically expression that was around his body but around his Flames, trying to freeze them in action. The physical might be gone but the Flame side, it's there, cracked up and not... 'melting' like ice should when it'd out of the freezer." The doc explains and, when put that way, yea, that is a problem and why Bel's would be of great help with getting the ice away.

"Which means, you two will need to work in tandem with your Flames. We'll use the Tranquillity of Rain to loosen the grip and have Constructs gripping the 'ice' before snipping the anchor. Your Flames will help numb the cutting going on with the Constructs." He starts at the doc, cause, well, if the doc believes it'll work then he's going to have to believe it too.

"What do we do about the gathered 'ice'?" He asks and the doc answers, "Put it in a Mist territory so it won't start floating back to him, because it will, orb him even. The Will behind them was meant to stay with the target until the Sky decides to release the target."

_Voi! What the fuck is with this guy?_ "Don't give me that look, you came to me because your experts were at a loss at how to proceed; that whatever they had been doing hadn't worked as expected." The doc states, likely reading it from him by subtle clues.

"Voi!, Find, whatever, we'll start on this, get it done and you can start on those burns!" He growls and the doc turns to looking at the Boss. Then, watches as the man calls up a ball of Sun Flames with highlights of Cloud, the ball of Flames falls onto the Boss the arm withdraws and so does the doctor.

"Voi! What the fuck are you..." Only something comes into View. "That should help. I Activated it into the visual range. The Cloud Flames will help prolong its duration."

_Ice indeed._ He admits and it's a very dull orange in color. Some pieces are the size of his fist while others are end table size. It's all different shapes and sizes. It's not really conforming to the Boss's body, it's like more of a sense of space.

He glances sharply at Mammon, cause this was beyond what somebody should do with Sun Flames, yet, they just witnessed it. "You can Activate it so you can see such things." Mammon states and the doc, who's eyes are a rich royal purple, hums in confirmation.

With a grunt, he stalks forward, glancing at the doc's hands to find no Flame Ring nor jewellery of any kind, not even a fucking watch. Which, well, that just shows that this guy could be Quality. Or could be he's using Activation to even call them forth.

He sparks his Rain Flames off his ring and with a glance towards Mammon, began to work on the tethers of the Boss's Flame this 'ice' have claimed. It's slow going as he finds it hard to figure out just how to cause this 'ice' to relax. But he'll figure something out, after all, he's Varia and thus, Quality.

It's not long before Mammon is helping on their end. He can feel the Mist help fine tune his Tranquility, Constructing it to work in relaxing or melting the 'ice'. It's hard as they've never tried to intertwine their Flames before and, then the Boss's Flames flare slightly, lending a touch of Harmony to their efforts, as if sensing what they were doing, making what they are doing all the easier.

A part of him leaps for joy at the touch of his Sky's Flames with his own. Once there's no anchor, Mammon is quick to remove the 'ice' and sending it for the hotel's bathroom, it's likely where Mammon decided to serve as the prison for the chunks of Flame. He's already feeling the strain, this wasn't his normal use of his Flames.

He's exhausted by the time they removed a third chunk, this one was plate size. The first had been fist size with the second having been tray sized. The 'ice' vanish away from view and the doc is already next to him, offering him something to drink. He takes it and gulps it down greedily, his Sky's Flames have vanished once more.

_Practice makes perfect._ It'll take some time but, they'll manage to remove the clinging Harmony the old geezer used again Boss stopping him in his tracks in the Coup that Wasn't. He also wishes that it hadn't just been Mammon and himself here, after all, Storm Flames could speed this up, likely destroying the 'ice' with out the need to imprison it behind a ward or territory.

After all, as long as Belphegor wasn't trying to harm the Boss, his Flames won't damage his Sky in doing something like this. "Voi! Why don't you use your Sun Flames to help purge this 'ice'?" He demands as the thought crosses his mind.

"Does he have a Bonded Sun?" The doc asks and, well, yea, good point. "A stranger who's a Sunny Cloud to boot. He'd automatically fight with me."

"Did you bring the medical report with you? Or his medical records?" The doc asks and he scowls, not sure if he trusts this guy with that kind of information. "I'm asking due to the nature of the intestines. I know someone with experience when it comes to gut bacteria reconstruction and we will need to bring them in on this."

"And why would want to be an expert on something that fucking gross?" He asks with a touch of disbelief. Although, the fact that something could have happened to the intestines of his Sky, oh fuck.

The doc just smirks ever so slightly. "Do you really want to know the answer to that? Such discussions will put people off their food and right now, neither of you can afford to skip a meal, not until we've got that Harmony off of his Flames." The man states in a very mild tone with honeyed concern for their well being, yet the smirk plus glint in those violet eyes is very predatory and very Cloud like.

"I think we can try for another one." Mammon pipes in and he just knows he's going to be charged for the Mist's help but that's fine. The doc turns away from looking at him and nods.

Soon enough, the doc Activates the view of that 'ice' and he takes one last sip before getting to his feet, walking over to the Boss once more. He sparks his Flame off the ring and spreads his Flame to another plate size chunk. Boss's Sky Flames reach for his at the same time as Mammon's own, they begin the task one more.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

Kenji hasn't come home yet and there's a collection of teens now hold up in the living room including the young Cloud. Take out is spread out through the living room and he's resting next to Chrome, sipping an espresso that he made from the beans Takato brought home today along with a junk food run.

Leon is resting in Takato's hair while Guilmon is sandwich between Takashi and Ryohei on a smaller couch to the right. I-pin is between Chrome and Takato. As for Kyoya, the young Cloud is sitting in a lazy boy chair that's been moved closer to the stairs but still in the living room.

They all seem to agree that they'll be watching movies and as they ate in the living room instead of at the kitchen, they talked about what they were in the mood for. Which is how they are watching the Princess Bride and they'll discuss what to watch once it's done, though it sounds like it's a toss up on Princess Mononoke or Total Recall. There's something about this that, well, should be self evident yet, well, he is very reluctant to acknowledge it.

After all, what were the odds? Yet, evidence is sitting about him right this minute, after all, why would a Classic Cloud like Kyoya to spend hours in a room, tolerate so much noise, a crowded room? What else could draw a Cloud out of their Territory?

A Sky and he's loathed to ask for confirmation of that. He's not sure if he should report him either, after all, it'll just draw unwanted attention to here. Plus, Fon knows and he'll bet the rest of the retirees are aware that Takato Uyehara is one, yet, none of them have done anything with that information, well, other then warn their kids to watch themselves around him.

All that would come of it would be that Vongola offering Takato to an Alliance Famiglia perhaps as a reward? Never mind the fact that the teen already has a life or Elements here in Namimori. _He's a Sky, he can find new ones, better ones._ He could hear the reassuring lie they'll tell themselves. Never mind that they'd have to go through not just one Cloud but two, for he doubts Kenji will take anyone trying to drag Takato into a life he didn't chose for himself.

Then there's Fon, God, what a blood bath that would be, for it's hard to believe that Fon isn't fond of the teen either, sure, he's not likely Takato's Storm Guardian but that won't matter. Though, why he's working himself up over this, he doesn't know, after all, there's no open slot for a Sun as it's already filled by one of the young men in this room.

After all, he's only suspecting that Takato's a Sky. As long as he doesn't confirm it, then it's still a theory, even if he suspects that it's a true one. He drinks from his cup only to find that he's been drinking from an empty cup for the last little while.

"Did you want me to get you a refill, Reborn-san?" Takato asks while he gets up from the arm of the couch. "No thank you, Takato, I am very particular when it comes to espresso."

As he makes it to the kitchen, he finds a Mist Construct of stairs for him to use. He sighs softly at the sight and does use them, after all, there's no reason not to, not when it'll make it easier to return to the living room. He notices the time on the clock and glances towards the door, still half expecting Kenji Uyehara to twist the lock and enter the house.

Once his espresso is done, he asks, walking back to the couch, "Your father isn't home yet, has something happened?"

"Adult Carnivore is busy treating the Varia Boss." Kyoya answers and he feels a shiver come up his spine at the nickname the younger Cloud gives. There's something that is very headache inducing as well along with alarm bells going off.

"How'd you know it's their Boss?" He asks as he comes to stand before Chrome, who picks him up and he then returns to his position on the arm. He wonders why none of them are overly panicking about this either.

"The injured as a Sky sporting a likeness to the last picture of said young man, if one mentally removes the damaged skin and muscle damage." Kyoya remarks and he glances around the room, this doesn't surprise any of them nor do they seem concerned over Kenji's well being, then again, perhaps Adult Carnivore explains it all. "Just the injured Sky, your Cursed Information Broker, and the Roaring Rain."

_Viper's here? They're Varia? The Mist Officer is described as short and a they._ He is started by the news. And the lack of use of the word Baby or herbivore in that too.

_Well, I guess they really were interested in Kenji, for his medical skills it seems, yet, shouldn't the Varia Medical be the ones dealing with Xanxus' state? Why seek Kenji?_ There's plenty of Suns skilled in healing with Flames back in Italy. _Why bring their weaken Sky here?_

Unless, they were hiding the fact that they broke him out of wherever the Don Vongola imprisoned him. "And you're not worried they might harm Uyehara-san?" He asks and there's a lot of snorts and bemusing looks.

"Uyehara-sensei is very good at defending himself, so if he didn't want to be there, they wouldn't be able to keep him there." Ryohei answers. "He's the one to teach Kyoya how to Hunt and he's improved my skills with Sun Flames. It's not just teaching me to heal others that he helped me learn."

_How to Hunt. Hunt huh? And something tell me that deserves the capital letter._ He thinks as he feels a shiver move up his spine once more. "Like what?" He finds himself asking.

"Well, to grow bony spines near my knuckles. Suggested that if I break a bone in my opponent in close quarters, that I could use my Flames to cause it to heal in the middle of combat without it being set properly, so they'd need to break it again in order to heal it properly." Ryohei recounts and his eyes widen at the mere suggestion as it, well, yea. That's something to remember in the future. "Not that I will, but it's nice to have options when dealing with a large group of people that you don't want to kill."

"He's shown me how to create calcium plates over my skin as body armour." He feels his jaw loosen at the image that provokes. "Guided me into Activating heat vision, low light vision, and switching my vision to regard darkness as light and light as darkness... Let's just say there's a lot of things he's taught me that can be done with Sun Flames and encourage me to come up with my own."

He could think of previous situations where heat and low light vision could have been helpful. Even the idea of being able to create his own body armour or even bony spine brass knuckles for fighting in closer quarters could have gotten him out of some scrapes or just given more options. "Do I really want to know what he taught Kyoya in regards to Cloud Flames?" He asks with a bit of strain in his tone and yea, from the feel of the room, he really doesn't.

_By God, if that's what he's been teach and encouraging this two official students to do, what has he suggested to the rest of them? With Takato?_ Although, that dark part of him very much approves of Kenji's mind set when it comes to encouraging his Students to pursue their own study in regards to what they can do with their Flames. To think outside the box in how they fought or use their Flames in supportive measures.

So, clearly not the lambs he thought them as. He admits to himself as he asks, "So, you're all gathered here?"

"Why not?" Takashi wonders. "Tonight's as good as any to have a bit of a movie night, maybe play hooky waiting for him to come home."

If he didn't know that all of them were top of their class, he would have put his foot down on them skipping school. Plus, he's seen their attendance records and their grades weren't going to be suffering much from them skipping tomorrow. _And I'm not their legal guardians either._ He reminds himself. _I'm just here, waiting on Fon to get back._

Yet, that dissatisfies him, on some level. That he's not just some stranger in their lives. That he belongs here... _Well, fuck, that just confirms that._ He thinks to himself as the movie comes to an end. He's already been pulled in by Takato's Sky, that this slip of a teen is managing what fair older and more experienced Mafioso couldn't do, and he's not really trying! There's no Sky Flames hanging from Takato like a cape or suit of armour, oh no, he can't feel any Flames hanging around this house beyond... Wait, why isn't the Flames of the Mist territory hanging around him?

He tries to sense them, yet, there's just the sense of background Flames that are letting him know he's in a territory. As the teens and kids get around to flipping a coin, his ears are repeating Kyoya's words once more and he recalls a memory that never happened to him in this Life.

Of a teen sporting the same coloring as Takato only, how they carry themselves and manner were like night and day, freaking out over a group of doppelgangers of some of those here plus a few others, fighting with one another while the far shorter Sky tries to reign them in, with little to no success. With him enjoying the chaos and spurring the teen to take charge as a Mafia Don to bring them to heel. Not that the fighters were really listening to the seemingly weak teenage Sky, a teen who was **his** Student.

He mentally recovers as they take their turns stretching and using the bathrooms of the house. Sipping his drink, he studies Takato once more, trying to dismiss the 'memory' as some kind of hallucination. A hoax of his mind, yet it's something he wishes to be true.

"Reborn?" Takato asks, no -san, and his throat tightens a bit at that soft question sounds so like the Sky should sound. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Talk about what?" He asks, doing his best to keep his tone even and in disinterested. Then he looks up at finds the soft orange glow in those eyes. "Dame-Tsuna."

The teen winces at the nickname and, the reaction causes himself to do the same. "I may have been Sawada Tsunayoshi last Life, but in this one, it is Uyehara Takato." The teen states firmly and he, well, he's not sure what he's feeling beyond the fact that, he's found Him and that he's Home once more.

"How?" He finally chokes out after a few minutes. The reincarnated Sky looks bemused, answering, "Dad using an enchanted bracelet to physically transform into a woman, it wasn't instant so, well, a minor change in a plan lead to him being pregnant with me, even though I'm not genetically his kid."

And that's a fairly decent way for him to end up with a new name along with a very different childhood. "When did you start to..." He asks and Takato sighs, there's echoes of pain in those eyes.

"When Takashi and I Bonded, it's what started the process." The Sky explains softly. "He... He was likely the very first to start." Takato moves to take the seat next to him. "Sky Attraction started to really hit when we were nine, Takashi tried to talk with his dad about it, only, well, they dodged or ignored it."

"He came right up and asked me not after a bit, I assured him that his parents were concerned on his behalf along with the subject needing to be discussed in private. About a month later, he's tired and wants answers, so, I take him to dad." This is clearly an old pain for his Student. "Dad reveals to him about Flames, even displaying his own, allowing Takashi to hold his hand in them before he pulls his hand out."

"I think dad laid it a little thick about why his parents were worried and fearful about my being a Sky, then again, he was just trying to help set down the ground work for them to mend the rift that had started to grow between them." Takato admits. "It happened when dad said the word Harmony, that's when Takashi began Grieving."

He couldn't help it and he glances off to find Takashi talking with Chrome in the kitchen. Seeing Takashi is find soothes him, that yes, he's find, although why he thought otherwise for a few seconds there... "My Flames have never been Sealed, so they felt different and Takashi, he was searching for that."

"Dad comforted him until he exhausted himself and I just felt helpless and very much responsible for the emotional pain he was going through. I headed home, dad phoned the Yamamotos, and waited for them before leaving himself."

"He was out of school for two weeks and he was using a Rain technique to numb all of his emotions. He wasn't healing but, well, it changed things. His body was colder then average and he became very logical driven, his ability to empathize with others suffered, and, of course, he quit baseball." _And it pained you, knowing that you were the one to took him there in search of answers. He wasn't yours then, yet you cared._

_Which is why you suffered so._ "Ryohei and he... I don't know, they noticed one another one day. They met not long after at a park and, well, Ryohei reached him. Helped him melt the ice that was numbing him."

"The next day, he was warmer and a bit more at peace with himself." Takato continues. "We talked during lunch, I was able to express my concern for him throughout the year and why I didn't try to approach him."

"He mentioned how I was like his Sky and then, well, he rested a comforting hand on my shoulder and, well, he found the Sky he was searching for." Takato explains. "He used the shortened name yet, it was that horrible nickname that came back the moment he said it."

"I asked him to please, not call me that. And, well, we got together after school. It wasn't long after that Ryohei and I Bonded. We then helped one another with our memories with Kyoya sometimes joining us." The Sky finishes and he sips his drink, while his own mind races in regards to this information.

"And the others?" And there were others, just no names coming to mind for them yet. "Came Home not long after I was thirteen. They couldn't stay but they took something with them that allows them to visit on the weekends." Takato nods towards the wall and, well, now he sees some new photos upon the wall, including a single group one where they were all dressed up in the same theme.

"Which Famiglia?" He asks, the name still hasn't come to him, although, he feels it's pretty obvious. "Vongola, they didn't really bother looking for a better candidate, not when the Ninth knew my genetic donor was descended from the Primo." Not like they had to do in this one.

"Is that any way to speak of ones father?" He asks and Takato makes a face, remarking, "It is when he wasn't around to perform the fatherly duties that tend to go with the title of dad." With Takato adding in a slightly childish tone, "I'll have you know that I prefer the one I have in this Life, thank you very much."

"Even though he killed him?" He asks and Takato snorts softly, "He didn't have to stay pregnant with me, he didn't have to give birth to me, and he didn't have to love me enough to tell me the truth when I was five."

" I think you just answered your own question." He quotes Takato from a few days ago, understanding the answer far better now. "At least there were drugs involve." He muses and then he gets the feeling that he'd be wrong. "Sun Flames?"

"Tied up in keeping his Cloud Flames from, well, expressing his displeasure with the whole giving birth event. I mean, would you want to be in the same floor as a Cloud in pain and there's no drugs to dull it what so ever?" He wouldn't stay in the same hospital, not for all the blood money in all of Italy offered in payment of such a stay.

"He's pretty much swore he's never going through that again. It's still make the gossip rounds as a bit of a joke about having their husband have the next one, that dad can could make it so." Takato tells him.

After a bit, the others seem to sense they finished their discussion and sit down, only with Ryohei coming to sit next to Takato, Takashi talking over the chair Kyoya had been sitting in with Guilmon laying next to it, which means that Kyoya is sitting next to Chrome on the smaller couch with I-pin upon his lap.

It takes him a bit to tear his gaze from the young Cloud, he's pretty sensing Kyoya wasn't this social able last Life. That it's highly out of character, yet, none of them seem to make any comments about it, just accepting it and moving on, respecting Kyoya's decision in sitting where ever he wants or with whom.

Which may be really why Kyoya could feel comfortable being social in the first place, then again, Kyoya and Takato likely Bonded fairly young so that clearly influenced them both in subtle ways. While some things were clearly the same, there were changes some were clearly for the better, only time will tell which were for the worst.

The movie begins and he allows himself just sit back and enjoy. After all, come what may, he's found the missing piece that he thought was lost to him for ever.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

Waking, proved interesting as he feels rather rejuvenated far more then he any right to be. The room is dark and he's comfortable, yet, well, he's got to go do something. So, he rolls over and sits up, his body protests in a very gentle manner, which he finds easy to ignore. Then, as he's about to enter, a voice halts him, "I wouldn't go in there, it's where the Ninth's Harmony Shards are imprisoned. They'll mob you the moment you enter."

He stiffens and glances around, there sitting in a chair, a ball of Sun Flames illuminate the man in the chair. The bangs are crimson, eyes violet color, and the rest of the hair is a very familiar shade of brown. His Sky Flames flare a bit yet, neither his Rain or Mist wake.

"They're exhausted. I've put them both in a healing sleep." The man gets to his feet and walks over. Placing a cell phone in his hand, the man back away. "Just push connect and you'll talk with him. I warn you now though, he isn't fond of his old name or the one his classmates gave him."

"You know him?" He asks, his voice sounding soft and husky, he winces along with the other. "This isn't really about me, but about you two talking. Also, I can, ah, help with that need, slow it down so its not urgent, allowing you to wait a few hours or until you find the public one."

"Find." He tries to growl but, again, his voice just didn't get in the range. Once more the man approaches and he watches as the man's finger lights up in a mixture of purple and yellow, the finger touches his chest and, he feels the Flames flow to the area and, sure enough, it's not a pressing need.

The other man's Flames fade now that they did their job. He eyes the man thoughtfully, he's in his early twenties yet, there's age in those eyes. On some level, this man wasn't a danger to him right now, that this man is the reason why he feels so whole.

He glances at the bathroom door and pulses his Flames. Wincing at sensing a collection of the old fucker's Flames within the other room. Which likely means that the number waiting for him to begin the call is likely the trashy brat's.

It doesn't surprise him that the brat found someone useful in this Life like this Sunny Cloud. Before going out the door, he checks to see if he's got cloths and then finds a key card for the room in a pocket. The odd Cloud is already walking back to the chair with a orb of Sun Flames following the man, revealing the various traps and Mist snares that litter the room.

He approves of the trick even if it annoys him that such a trick even works. Turning form the bathroom door, he heads out of the room, carrying the phone in his hand still. He finds the elevators and head for the main floor, the most likely floor to have public washrooms.

He encounters a few people who seem to like the view of him without a shirt or foot wear. Ignoring them, he finds what he is looking for and before doing anything, studies himself in the mirror and, well, his eyes widen at the person starting back. A familiar stranger that is clearly him yet it's not who he's expecting to see.

Then again, his vision is clear and sharp, whatever damage he once Lived with has been fixed along with the ones that physically marked him from his imprisonment in the last Life. He's a tad thin but, well, healing takes energy and it had to come from some where. He stretches his arms and then rotates his shoulders, there's just a gentle feel of pain and no loss of movement.

He turns his body and does his best to glimpse his back, once more, there's none of the expected scars. Turning to face the mirror, he then glances down at his feet before dropping the pants that cover him, his legs look fine nor do they feel sore. With a snort, he moves his tongue about his mouth, feeling his teeth, examining them by the way his tongue moves while he picks up his pants a bit, walking over to relieve himself, the phone in his pants pocket for now.

Once that's done, he walks over to watch his hands and then, pulls out the phone. Brightening up the screen, the name on display is Takato and the image is a screen shot of an anime character. Pressing the connect button, the phone rings thrice before he gets a sleepy, "Hello?"

"Trashy brat." He greets the other and there's a snap of a yawn ending rather quickly. "Xanxus, you're awake? We were wondering about it, Kyoya-senpai says you were looking better this afternoon."

Another thing to make a note of the security of his Officers. "Date?" He tries to ask gruffly yet again, his voice just doesn't get there.

The brat gives him the date and he mentally calculated where that had put them in the last Life. "Ring Battles?" He asks, again trying to try and sounding like himself, only it doesn't work.

"Likely next month if not late December or early January." The brat muses. "I know something's happening next month for sure. Might be when he was going to reverse it."

"I see." So, what happened to cause them to be held later? "They did their research this time when they needed a heir this time around, but I doubt they'll pick one of the others put use in the Ring Battles."

Oh, yea, that could be a reason for the later timeline. "You know." His voice whispers.

"Back then? No, now, you just kind of confirmed it. Gods that man is a fool, did he think it wouldn't be noted, what it meant for the future relations?" He snorts at the bitterness and he finds himself smiling a bit. Looks like the trashy brat been doing some thinking and reflections.

"You still of the Blood?" He asks and the teen chuckles for a bit before saying, "You know the man who gave you this phone? He snatched me when I was just two months old fetus from Nana; spent the next seven months as a woman and pregnant with me."

The idea of the man up stairs giving birth was an odd thought, then again, is there really a limit to what one can do with enough Will. "Raised right in this one." He decides.

"The bar was fairly low to begin with." The brat says with a sigh. "Even compare to most normal parents, he's leaps ahead of them. After all, he gave me the chance to pick my poison when I was five and I asked about where my mom was, followed through with the truth too."

"Name?" He asks after a bit. "Uyehara, dad's is Kenji and mine is Takato." The brat answers, he probably should have expected a different first name. "He's Quality?"

"Geeze, he heals you up to snuff and you're trying to poach him? Besides, I'm not the one who you're going to have to talk to about that." The brat remarks and raises his eye brow at that. "He doesn't feel like he's got a Sky."

"Xanxus, what just check, I mean really Check. It's... Even when it happened, we all needed to see it with out own eyes before really accepting it." The brat admits, clearly trying to convincement that it's Important and highly fucking unbelievable to explain without evidence.

"Fine." It's piped his interest and it's clearly something that only the trashy brat could end up encountering, as a fucking fetus in this case it seems. "Anything else?"

"Just that you're fine and you're you." _Fucking trash._ He thinks fondly, it's late and they were both clearly tired, so they were both a little emotional. He's shot anyone who'd suggest otherwise.

"See you soon." The brat says and he grunts before moving the phone from his ear, ending the call with his thumb. Pocketing the phone, he glances once last time at the mirror, at the familiar stranger residing there.

With a snort, he exits the publish washrooms, this is taking its toll on him and so, he heads back to the room, the number is on the paper sleeve of the card.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"VOI!" Is the sound he wakes to. "The Hell did you Do!"

"Trashy shark, shut up!" He snarls and is still annoyed that it doesn't have the same harsh tone. Grabbing the pillow and turning his back on his Rain.

"Boss? BOSS!" He pulls the covers higher up, doing his best to ignore the sunlight and his loud ass shark of a Rain.

In the end, he snaps and rolls onto his back, throwing the pillow at his Rain Officer, the aim is a bit off and it takes him a few seconds as to why it had been. "Happy? I'm wide awake shark trash." Again, it's not hitting the right note.

"You might want to use your Flames to re-anchor your sense of self to your body." The brat's fucking parent suggests. He turns his head towards the man. "Getting the foreign Harmony from your Flames shifted your spiritual balance, you likely have a different self image of your sense of self too."

_You are remembering a different body, hence why you need to Harmonize your self with your current body._ He translates that into.

"Get us breakfast, shark trash." He orders and his Rain growls at him before throwing his hands up, marching out of the room after being sure he's got his wallet. His Officer sending a glare at the brat's parent.

A simple glance at his Mist and Mammon gives a slight incline of the hood, he crosses his legs and proceeds to just that. His Flames feel pulled out of place, sure enough and what points should be in Harmony with his body, aren't. He then figures out how to align them back up, which takes some trial and error but, once everything is in Harmony, he takes a feels up the room.

There's Mammon along with Fantasma, the tiny Bond the two share and then the pacifier that is majorly tied up with Mammon's Flames. _Not for fucking much longer._ He thinks to himself, the brat's still a bleeding heart when it comes to his friends and Family.

Then, he turns to feel out the Sunny Cloud. Strong Will and very much invested in their body, there's grown modifications there, making such interesting patterns within the body too, just waiting for Sun Flames to Activate and Cloud Flames to speed the appearance of. The Cloud feels very dense and the Sun feels bright.

He circles and then, there's something. Something that while it could draw on the Cloud and Sun, drew first on... He feels his breath caught, if not for the Bond, he likely wouldn't have found the Sky that the Cloud and Sun hide. Compared to the Cloud or Sun, this Sky feels far more gentle, almost frail, yet, they are powered by the same Will as the other two.

Turning his attention to the Bond, he senses this to be Storm Guardian Bond, one who's very Pure and oh so very Protective of this Sky, one would almost think that only a weak Storm would be Bonded with such a Sky, yet, it doesn't seem to be the case. An impossibility and it goes against the fundamentals the Mafia and others harp on.

That only the Strongest Skies could draw in the Strongest Elements. That a weak Sky couldn't Bond properly with someone stronger themselves. He is very curious about just who this Guardian is and can sense that the brat is right, he'd have to get this Guardian on board to sway this Hidden Sky into his Varia.

_Fucking shit, how the fucking hell did they even Bond? If I hadn't found it, I wouldn't have fucking thought it possible for something like this! By every scrape of Flame knowledge, a Sky that gentle or frail shouldn't have the Purity needed to support a Bond! _He thinks to himself.

It's only feeling his approaching Rain did he pull his Flames back and then into himself. It takes him some minutes to feel at Home with his body. He opens his eyes and then curses just to see if he's able to reach his usual tones and sure enough, he sounds far more like himself, not a hint of softness or relax pitch.

"You, are a fucking impossibly." He states simply at the brat's parent. "But then, you already know that. As does the trashy brat."

"How was that phone call, by the way? Do I need to replace my phone?" The man inquires with a slightly raised eye brow.

The door opens and in steps his Rain Officer, "VOI! Fucking shitty selection!" The matter of the phone call on hold, for now and not forgotten.

"Food." He orders and his Rain is loud but complies, tossing the bag onto the bed for his share. His Rain had been petty and didn't get the Cloudy guest anything, not that it seems to bother the man any, then again, this was the man who managed to put a certain urge in slow burn instead of something he needed to as soon as possible.

It's more then likely the brat's parent could slow his metabolise with easy. Given the man's relax position, he's not the least bothered by the slight insult of being snubbed concerning food. "Who did you phone last night?" Mammon brings up finally.

He stares at the robed Mist and then towards the Rain. "Just because you have them, doesn't mean they do. You being up and about will help speed their recall. Although, you could just have your Mist Guardian help speed it up, although, from I hear, they might just charge you the privilege of them remembering on top of the charge." The brat's parent remarks and the two likely send the man hard looks.

"Where did you find him then?" He asks the two. "If not by approaching the trashy brat?"

"Luss put him forward as the one who have a better chance at managing your health while in Namimori." Superbi states gruffly. "He's the official doc of the retirees."

_A Cloud doctor? Fucking fantastic, just, well, why the fucking hell not? What's next? Flying pigs?_ He thinks to himself.

"We've got a trashy brat to met with." He states and tosses his trash at the bin. Then, as he goes for the dressers, looking for cloths, he's about to head for the bathroom.

"VOI! Not the Fucking Bathroom, Boss!" His Rain tells him, recalling what he felt last night, he rubs his temple with one hand.

"And why haven't you destroyed it yet?" He asks and gets as an answer, "Storm Flames would be able best to do so."

And he didn't sense any of his Varia beyond his Mist and Rain. Lovely. "And the Brat's Storm?"

"Would need prefer it being yours as we'd be able to get whatever trapped Flames of yours from them, allowing you to reclaim the Flames are your leisure in the future." The brat's parent replies. He finds that to be an interesting consideration, after all, if he does that, that might come in handy in the future fight.

Then, with a grunt, he changes here, glaring at the brat's parent, who gets up and closes the curtains. Once he's dressed, they are off, the phone still in his possession. He can feel the Mist's eyes on his back, it's very clear that the Officer wants answers.

It takes them a while to walk to the house, nothing overly fancy nor one that would draw much attention in this neighbourhood. It's not the same location but then, this house is far smaller then the one Sawada bought for his civilian wife. He can sense the Mist Flames hanging about the house as they approach the front door.

As the brat's parent unlocks the door, he finds himself pulled right into the house without a by your leave, finding himself face to face with some mutt sporting a darker shade of orange aglow and not looking very pleased. "Guilmon, please let go of him. Dad's home now."

Implying that its the dog that's holding him and that the brat doesn't have the same issue with dogs as last time. "Reborn." He hears Mammon greet the Sun Arcobaleno. _Well, of fucking course the chaos lover would be here, the hit-man is possessive of his Students._ "Viper or should I use Mammon?"

"VOI! What the hell?! Is that mutt floating? VOI! What's the fuck going on with those Flames holding Boss?!" His Rain demands. An ear flickers forward before returning to being flat against the skull.

"Takato... Floating. Dog." He hears Reborn repeat and he finally gets which Flames are holding him. "Explain."

"Guilmon's Flame Active, he's an Earth." He hears the brat answer with a hint of a sigh. The staring contest continues between the mutt and him, clearly, the mutt wants to establish his dominances over him with this.

Then, a hand is scratching behind the mutt's ears and the mutt is torn between enjoying the sensation or keeping up with this contest. Then, he's dropped like a rock within seconds of a decision being made. The brat's parent is the one who got the mutt to drop him, still floating in the air and with a wagging tail.

"Earth Flames? VOI! What the fuck are you fucking talking about?!" His shark trash shouts as he gets himself off the floor. It's annoying that neither of his Officers remember fuck all about the last Life as it would speed this exchange along.

"Gravity is to Earth Flames what Harmony is to Sky Flames." The brat states simply. "And there's an Earth set of Flames, they're far rarer and the only known Famiglia to claim them are the Simon Famiglia, who migrated to Japan during Primo's reign."

"Why does the dog have them?" The pint size hit-man asks and the trashy brat admits with a touch of embarrassment, "Because my Sky Flames helped Guilmon develop human level intelligence and since I wasn't using my secondary much, my Sky Flames kind of helped set him up with those as it wasn't costing me needed energy."

"Dino's horses." Reborn reflects and once the mutt is on the floor, the parent heads off to the kitchen, the mutt following after. Not once glancing at him, which annoys him, being dismissed like that.

"It is just a touch, but if Dino invests the right amount of time and affection... Something could develop. Might be more like your animal companion bond then Guilmon." The brat says and he finds himself staring the teen standing with Reborn perched on the shoulder.

It's background, this chit chat. He's got more important things to pay attention to. And judge.

The coloring is the same, the rest, even the Flames, difference. This teen is taller then Tsuna had been, holding himself in his current pose far more naturally then Tsuna could manage outside of meetings with important Dons or when he's on official business. The air is being comfortable with his own skin and it takes him a bit to reach out with his own Sky Flames to get a feel for this young Sky.

They matched his observations of the brat. No Seal means the brat grew up with them and learning to use them. The brat turns to look at him and there's shades of kindness there but also steel and confidence in himself. He notices the Bonds and they were strong ones, the Elements were once more Home.

He pulls his Flames back, he guesses that the brat and his Guardians had trouble finding each other, for the trashy brat's Sky has a different feel from last Life and they likely had been searching for the old feel. Yet, they found each other and accepted the changes their Sky have from last time. "Looking better trashy brat." He states gruffly and the teen inclines his head.

"So are you." The brat states with a hint of a smile. He snorts and glances around the room, Mammon is already before the wall that sports a number of photos while his Rain is sticking close, scowling at the brat and switching to so the same to Reborn.

Dino liking having been the hit-man's student in this Life as well. His eyes flicker toward the pint size hit-man and the Sun scowls. "I am very much aware of last time, Xanxus."

"VOI! What the fuck are you shitty people are going on about?! What last time are you talking about?!" The shark snaps.

"Be nice Reborn." The teenage brat states gently and Reborn just hums before saying a single name, "Sawada Tsunayoshi." Brown eyes flash an emotion but stay steady.

Tension fills the air, coming from both officers. "That fucker Sawada died without a heir." Superbi snaps. "Even the brats that have been confirmed are far to young to be conceived while he was alive!"

"Went was his last visit to his wife?" Reborn asks and the shark's head jerks as he does the math. "She wasn't pregnant! There's records of her getting a tumour removed!"

"She didn't develop that tumour, it was transferred." The parent pipes in as he leans his back against the counter with toast in his hand. "And I got a two month old fetus in return."

"Was it even a tumour?" He asks. "As far as records go, it was a fleshy mass that was attached to her uterus and she missed at least one monthly visitor." The brat's parent states in a bland tone, not answering the question.

"VOI! Men don't just... You got to be fucking kidding me! What, you had him in a jar?!" The shark snaps.

"Who said I was male in body at the time? I had a plan and if not for a delay of three months, I'd have gone through with it and, well, from the sounds of things, failed and been deposited of without second thought." The man says. "I was seventeen going on eighteen at the time, I'm sure you know what that's like."

Given that shark trash cut off his own hand in his teens or his Coup that Wasn't? This delay did seem to be what was needed for the brat to live a full life though. So, he's successes in killing Iemitsu and walks away pregnant with the brat, decides to keep him and give birth to him without anyone the wiser.

"VOI! You're the one who... How?!" The shark trash demands and he's got the feeling it was the wife plus the fleshy mass.

"Activated a development of a poison gland meant to killed a single genetic code. Not sure how many repeated exchanges needed for it to enter into the target. Had expected to trigger it with Sun Flames." The brat's parent says with a shrug.

"Fucking sneak of you, trash." He states with a note of approval. It's clear that the man had ideas and found ways to pull them off. His studies the brat for a reaction but, nothing really shows.

Reborn though, oh did that cause the pint size hit-man a temple rub. "Of course you'd find away to use Sun Flames in that manner. Why am I so surprised? When you suggested to Ryohei healing bones of an opponent wrong in battle!"

Could Suns do that? The man gets a very Cloudy smirk as he takes a bite out of his toast. He'd have to mention it to his trashy Sun. Might even mentioned the whole gender change too, might as well see if his Officer could pull it off. Might find test subjects first though, what would be fun to watch happen too.

It's the smirk that reminds him that this doctor is a Sunny CLOUD and that the brat's parent doesn't act like it, making it easy to forget that fact. Something that would work in the man's favour as they wouldn't be prepared for super strength or inhuman durability.

"I used that as an example of something he could do and what he should watch out for." The parent states. "I've done the same with Kyoya, when Fon sent him to me to sharpen his claws."

Fon? He glances towards the wall of pictures and Mammon sensing his attention. _'Fon lives here, has since the boy was around six. I've added the expense to your current bill.'_ Which could mean nothing, after all, the predatory Cloud trash is related to the Storm.

The mentioning of taking Kyoya as a student suggests they hadn't had their memories at the time. "Which reminds me, we best get Kyoya to check your gut. I've Activated the growth of the healthy bacteria but Kyoya will be able to reconstruct the remainder back into being healthy." He feels himself stiffen at that, his mouth opening at the mention of the Cloud and any mention of the Cloud brat using Mist Flames.

Then recalls his own health problems from before and, well, while he has questions as to what the Cloud trash has been getting up to, it sounds like they have a way to fix something that troubled Luss back in their last Life. "Fine, what ever. Just as long as Luss is around for it." He states, looking back at the trashy brat.

"We can sit at the table or in the living room. We have to discuss what's happening with the Vongola and talk about options about the breach the Ninth's going to try and repeat." The brat says and, he prefers the table, so he walks over.

He notices the finger grooves on the metal surface, his gaze flickering towards the Sunny Cloud, evidence that yes, something upset the man. Pulling out a chair, he sits down and the brat sits across from him. "I'll start a pot of the Italian coffee and did you want a cup of tea?" The parent asks.

"I'll have coffee for this." The brat states and he asks, "Sure you don't want something stronger in that?"

"It's too early for you to be drinking Xanxus, plus, best not until Luss clear you as your personal doctor." He scowls, like the fuck he needs to be cleared.

"VOI! You can't be fucking serious?! Your that bastard's SON?"

"By Blood, yes, but I'm sure most of us here will agree that there's more to being a father then just a genetic connection or sleeping with ones mother." The bratty teen remarks, glancing between Superbi and himself. "Uyehara Kenji is my father." The teen says looking straight into his eyes, they flare at the declaration.

He approves of the conviction there. And the sentiment that's implied concerning blood not being everything when it comes to Family. That this teen who only remembers him from last Life was going to enter into a world he once didn't want anything to do with because he's got Family he cares for and wants to protect as best as he can. Do so of his own free will when there's no need, that the Ninth finally had to do what he should have done in the last one, actually do some god fucking research into the matter of succession instead of just settling on a civilian raised Sealed Sky just happened to have the Primo's Blood in his veins.

That he's counted among that number in spite of everything he's acted or said last time around. He's a warm, pleasant feeling of being Wanted for just Being himself.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

It's the day before his teacher's birthday that he arrives in Namimori. He'd been in Japan for two days previously and feeling out of sorts for reasons that his dreams gave hints of as he looked for another Gift that his instincts insisted he buy for a little brother who's birthday is the next day of their respective teachers.

A little brother who's name he can't recall yet gets fond glimpses of. One he feels he's about to be meeting once more. The orange hoodie jacket seems a bit bigger then what he judges the younger's frame in those dreams, visions, maybe slowly returning memories? Yet his instincts said this was Right. He took it to a tailor and the English number of 27 stitched on the back, white thread used making the number stand out.

The information his men have gathered reports that there's a local Yakuza group laying claim to the town, yet that shouldn't be as according to official documents, Namimori is owned by the Vongola Famiglia, considered neutral ground, and is a place where retired Mafioso and free lancers come to retire. Yet, when he inquired around for the Vongola contact in Namimori, there isn't one.

In fact, there's not much recent information concerning Namimori that's about the state of the town itself. There's rumours making the gossip circles but nothing solid. The latest is about a rising threat of some doctor who's setting the town's retirees again Vongola. That he's building a Famiglia out of the town. The goals seem to vary as do the promises he's said to sway people to his cause, although why it's said that if one were to follow the man, he promises to turn enemy Mafioso men into lady prostitutes is clearly a work of fantasy fiction or perverted minds.

The gossipers clearly are bored and just wanting to best each other over who's best at creating the juiciest bit of gossip based on very few facts. Some of those so called 'facts' being complete fiction but juicy all the same. Never mind that there's few who've visited the town officially or can say they actually met with the doctor that's the source of gossip.

His men collect their baggage and he has them set off to rent a hotel, taking only Romario with him to go meet with this doctor. It takes him a while to realize that he's being observed and he can't feel his watcher being near. So, he continues to walk casually while watching the roof tops because his watcher feels above ground.

Yet, there's nobody moving about what passes as a sky line here in Namimori. No flickering shadows or blurs in the air. No glinting lights showing a telescope focus on him.

He sparks his Flames from his ring and checks himself over for Mist Flames yet finds nothing. _Far off, in human vision._ His instincts tell him, not in words but impressions. _Misty Cloud._ They impress upon him with fondness causing him to almost stumble as he is rewarded with memories of a young Flame User with a preferences with welding a pair of tonfas

_Herbivore._ The youth snarls out in his head. _I will bite you to death!_

_Kyoya Hibari._ He thinks with a touch of amusement and affection on his face. His little brother's furious and very independent Cloud.

Knowing who's watching him, he allows his Flames to stop filling the area around him. He returns to walking towards the address of one Doctor Uyehara with Romario following in his wake. There's a sense of familiarity in this town that beckon him to recall, but he sets that aside for later.

He wishes to meet the source of gossip himself. The building comes into view and he feels his watcher's eyes move from him. Which is rather interesting, which makes him wonder if it was due to now knowing his target and thus he's of no interest or because there's no point in watching him in another's Territory?

They say Kenji Uyehara is a Sunny Cloud, a rather uncommon combination of Flames and makes it rather interesting that Kyoya would tolerant another so close to his Territory. The clash of Clouds do tend to leave their marks on the victor along with their battle ground.

He is filled with worry over the physical well being of his little brother's Cloud. Wanting to go seek the other just to lay eyes on the young man that he once claimed as his Student but, decides to finish what he started and after taking a calming breath, enters the building. It's a mixture of waiting room and front area.

Nobody in the room and he sees a door with the Doctor's name upon the plate. He glances around, expecting a desk in this area that's manned by a young woman. How strange, that he doesn't have secretary.

_Or even the illusion of having one._ There's no desk, just a wall with various books on shelves plus a magazine rack. No box of kid toys either and there's a hallway along with stairs going up to the next floor. No sign of an elevator in view of the front door.

He walks over and reads a few of the titles on the shelf, many of which are Japanese graphic novels and others appear to be just novels, some in other languages, English being the popular language but there's Italian and French being a bit more common too among the collection. Works ranging from horror and crime drama to fantasy and science fiction.

He spies more then a few interesting titles that he wouldn't mind pulling off the shelf to read the back but he's very much aware of the door and the man behind it. _Still_, he reflects as he approaches the door, _it's a comfort kind of space, causal even._

He almost just grabs the door knob and opens the door before flushing and deciding to knock instead. "Come in." He hears and he opens the door, Kenji Uyehara is still typing away at the computer as he enters.

The man's hand goes to the mouse and he assumes it's to save whatever it was he was working on. Then the screen goes dark with a tap of a button on the screen. He watches as Doctor Uyehara turns and he gets a good view of the man's violet eyes and the way the man studies both Romario and himself.

The hair is mostly brown with crimson bangs. If not for records his men found, he'd buy the fact that this man isn't old enough to have a teenager as a son for he appears about his own age, not even beginning of wrinkles or crows feet lining. It takes him a bit to realize the signs of age were in the man's eyes, which seem to now glint in amusement right at him.

"Uyehara Kenji, father of Uyehara Takato and adopted uncle of Dokuro Chrome." Kenji introduces himself and there's a light rush of images of a young girl sporting an eye patch that his mind tells him is Chrome. Arms resting upon the desk while the man is looking fairly relaxed.

"Dino Chiavarone, Don of the Chiavarone Famiglia. Former student of Reborn." He introduces himself before wincing at his mistake.

"Reborn's been staying at the house, he claims he's here to visit Fon." Kenji muses and he does know of the Storm Arcobaleno. "Here officially or for his birthday?"

"The Alliance has a lot to say in regards to you." He states politely and Kenji smiles in clear amusement as he leans back. "I bet." Is the reply.

"More of the latter then the former." He admits after a bit. "I see. Well, do you need the address or do you already know it?"

He chuckles at the tone of teasing in Kenji's voice as he does his best to not reach up and scratch anything embarrassingly. "There's to be a party at the house tomorrow evening, I'm sure he'll be happy to see you there. I'll be at the house all afternoon, so you can show up early."

"Right, will do." He says, not sure what to make of the way his eyes kept going to the man's head. As the shade of brown reminding him of his cute little brother. Which, he wants to inquire about.

Yet, how does he ask about someone he doesn't have a name of? "I don't suppose there's a baby Sky here in Namimori." He asks before he thinks about why the man wouldn't answer that.

"Baby Sky? One would think the Vongola would have come along to scoop up such a Flame User." Kenji remarks, his head titling every so slight to the side. "After all, they are suppose to be the land owners and are invested in Namimori as a neutral territory. In honour of the Primo settling here upon retirement."

_Ok, ouch._ He admits. After all, there isn't a Vongola agent here on the Famiglia's behalf and the word among the Yakuza, Namimori belongs to one of their Groups.

"I am sure that once the matter of the current heir apparent has become official that they will once more look eastward." He says in a reassuring manner. "With new leadership comes a fresh set of eyes to review the matter."

"I never understood why Don Vongola remained upon his throne when he had three grown sons." Kenji remarks with a slight shake of his head. "Only way to settle children are to put some responsibilities upon their shoulders and watch them grow into men with the weight keeping their feet on the ground."

_That's one way to look at it._ He mentally allows. The Nono's excuses in that regard ranged widely from them not having enough Guardians to them not ready for the responsibilities that being Don of a Famiglia comes with.

"It's not like the man wouldn't be there with advice either." Kenji remarks. "Didn't his own mother do the same for him?"

"I would assume so. She was a tough old broad by all accounts." He admits.

"You fishing for news about the heir?" He asks after a bit of silence. Kenji studies him thoughtfully. "Are you offering?"

"I've never personally met the young man before his appointment." He allows himself to say in a measured tone. "Word is he's busy with his new lessons and work load."

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it? Suddenly finding yourself the sudden heir of a Famiglia when there's a sudden lack of them." Kenji muses and that hits rather close to home, for reasons.

"You're not the only Cloud here in Namimori." He changes the subject to one he wants to hear about. "I noticed another."

Kenji's smiles has a hint of pride there and self satisfaction. It should have rung alarm bells in concern for Kyoya yet, they are silent. "Kyoya's uncle had him come to me for training once he Activated. He's come along way from just going straight at an opponent with tonfas out and using overwhelming physical strength to carry him through the fight."

"So, no Conflict?" He asks. There's a slight roll of the eyes, it's clear this concern has since worn thin. "I arrived while he was a babe. He wanted Namimori and I just happen to live here, I only stayed because this is a retirement community and I knew he'd be safe here."

_Oh, so Kenji's Territory isn't the town and Kyoya wanted Namimori as his._ He muses. _So, the baby Cloud grew up with an Active Cloud who didn't want Namimori, so didn't do anything when the baby Cloud started to lay Claim to it._

So the two Clouds known of each other for years and Kyoya grew up to have someone able to deal with his Activation and teach him the ropes. Which means that neither of them saw each other as Rivals to tear limb from limb.

That puts his concerns regarding Kyoya's state of health to rest. "We're just as human are any other Flame User, We can curb our own instincts when we want too." Kenji states with a flat look and he winces a bit, but it's hard, particularly as he recalls Kyoya's animal kingdom references.

"His secondary is Mist, if he wants to Construct his view of the world in certain terms that go along with his Cloud's Territory instincts that's his decision." And Mists do love getting strong emotional reactions from others, which, given is Kyoya's secondary, helps him see Kyoya in a new light. Even if the Kyoya he had known never bothered to learn to use his secondary.

"It must be odd, my concern over a Cloud I've never even met." He admits and there's a slight softening in those violet eyes. "Perhaps in this Life, no." Kenji states simply and his heart pounds, because, that's the right word for it. _This Life._

"I... I... Hahaha. Yea, like I've only Lived another Life besides this one." He says, trying to believe that, not sure why he's already preparing for a fight.

Kenji stares at him in a flat manner, eyes not buying it. "You'll find yourself in good company here." Kenji states simply and he, isn't sure if that's reassuring or not.

Only, this man shouldn't KNOW yet DOES. Then again, he's not even sure what he KNOWS himself. "Well, I best be going, got to check on my men, you know? Make sure they haven't run into trouble!"

He is fleeing and they both know he is. He just couldn't take being in there and he's jogging, trying to make sense of everything, that moving was going to help him think.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He finds himself before a house the digital invite gave as an address. The date of the party is listed for tomorrow, yet, he's here now. Checking the place out, after all, he's never met an Uyehara Takato. Wanting to make sure that it's a safe place to bring his Guardians and younger sister.

"Here for the party?" A man's voice asks him, he never noticed the approach as he's too busy in his own head, trying to make sense of Flame hanging about the house and was it worth his time to approach to get some answers? Then notices the guy wasn't.

"Party?" he echoes and glances at the number of men in black suits. Could they be Mafioso?

"Yes, it's Reborn's Birthday today. He's my former teacher. We're here to celebrate it." The man's appears does seem familiar in a way that reminds him, an image of this man fighting him with a bullwhip and Sky Flames hanging about him.

Now there's just a familiar impression of knowing this man. Very light impressions of memories upon his mind at that. "The Tiny Sun." He asks once he gets an image of a tiny man, the size of a baby, with a yellow Pacifier. His hands showing off the height of the Cursed Mafioso.

"Yea, he is about that size." The man says and he turns back to the house, titling his head at the sight. "Yea, I guess I am." Cause, why not? The promise of free food and meeting this Takato who's party he's invited to attend tomorrow.

"Dino." The blond behind him says. "Enma." He says in turn, Dino seems to be the right name for the guy. Not asking for a last name nor giving one.

"So, a friend of Takato?" Dino asks as they approach the porch. There's a dog barking from within the house as they reach door.

"Could be." _How do you know me?_ The door opens and it's not the man who's grabs his attention, its the dog. There's also something that just keeps it hard to look away. "Hey there boy." He whispers softly as he moves to the side before kneel, offering his hand for the dog to sniff.

There's a conversation going around between the two, mostly greetings and the man leads the group off to the back door. He's alone with the dog, Guilmon, he reads from the tag. The collar is crimson and the metal tag sporting a modified bio hazard on one side with the name on the others.

Guilmon begins to get closer, leaning more into him. He lets a soft smile grace his face. Then, well, his own Flames began to flare and the dog begins to flare in response. He chokes slightly and Guilmon looks hurt.

With a sigh, not really sure why, but, well, he allows his Flames to mingle and the two Earth Flame gently flow between each other. They don't intermesh their Flames. Both Flames keep to their Users.

After a few seconds, there's a throaty noise and he glances around. "I take it you've never moved your Gravity to a level before?" The adult who's name he doesn't have remarks at his panic.

"Ah, no, no I haven't. I didn't think I could." He admits giving the man a pleading look. Noting the violet eyes and crimson bangs.

"Guilmon, gently please. He is our guest, while early, is still a welcome to visit us." The man says and slowly, they both float down to the floor and then, the dog's Flames withdraw from his own and the air.

Without the other Flames out, his own returns to his own body and he moves to stand. "I'm Uyehara Kenji, father of Takato and adopted uncle of Chrome.

His eyes widen and stares at the man. the girl's name stirring memories. "Kozato Enma." He greets the man. "I was just curious about the invite for tomorrow."

"It must have come out of nowhere, to be suddenly invited to a stranger's Birthday Party." Uyehara-san notes. "Can we expect your Guardians soon?"

"I can keep myself safe." He states with a scowl. "I'm more then capable of protecting myself."

"I didn't mean to imply you couldn't, Kozato-kun. My son is a Sky and I know his Elements often worry about his well being." Uyehara-san admits.

He wonders if they were as paranoid about his well being as his own, the near miss so many years ago that has his Famiglia wary and jumping at shadows. He's Heir yes, but, he doesn't know if he wants to be Don. They've been pursued for decades, resulting in their small Famiglia.

"Why did I receive an invite to your Sky son's Birthday?" He asks after a bit, Guilmon nudging his side with a soft whine. "This is my first time meeting you or being in this house."

"You were invited due to your respective Famiglia's history." Uyehara-san states honestly. "More importantly, you were friends with Sawada Tsunayoshi."

"Gods..." He as his memories try to overwhelm him. _Oh yea, the Ring Battles should have..._ His head pounding and he feels his balance slipping, only someone is holding him up.

"Want to lay down on the couch?" He nods his head, a nap would be great right now. He's gently guided to a couch, the dog resting before the couch, and soon enough, he's reliving his previous Life.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Is he going to be joining us?" Dino asks Kenji was the man joins them in the back yard. It seems that Guilmon lured Enma Kozato to the house for today's party.

"He's got a sudden headache. He's currently sleeping it off on the couch." Kenji assures his first Student. It sounds like Don Simon is getting his memories all at once.

_Although, is Enma the actual Don right now? After all, Daemon couldn't masqueraded as Iemitsu Sawada, what with the man being dead._ He muses as he drinks from his cup. _Not my concern or problem._

He consider the thought a bit, his eyes on Dino as his former student is clearly not comfortable around Kenji. Whatever is the cause, it likely happened yesterday when Kyoya mentioned Dino visiting the building Uyehara owns. Kenji didn't mention much beyond Dino being here for his Birthday, thus this wasn't an official visit by the young Don Chiavarone but a former Student here for their former teacher.

Then again, perhaps he does know the reason for Dino's skittishness only he's using Kenji as an excuse. _Hmm, this is unacceptable._ He decides with a slight frown.

"Kenji, I am going to take Dino up to Fon's room." He tells his host who clearly understands what he intends to do concerning his former Student's manner and memories.

He uses Leon to lasso the Bucking Horse, pulling him into the house. His former student knowing better then to argue with him. "Idiot Dino, up the stairs." He orders once he's on his Student's shoulder.

Leon returns to normal and is climbing up his arm to perch on his shoulder. Enzo is poking his head out of the breast pocket, likely sensing his owner's distress. He points out which room to open and leaps off Dino's shoulder as Dino's klutz nature rears its head a bit, causing the twenty something to stumble into the room.

Dino laughs nervously, having managed to catch himself from falling flat on the floor. He sits himself on the bed and regards the blond without letting his emotions show upon his face or eyes. His former Student closes the door and glances around the room, not moving from the door though.

_"Kenji mentioned you visited him yesterday."_ He began in Italian. _"He mentioned you weren't here officially."_

Dino laughs nervously. _"He's not what I expected from the rumours circulating among the gossip circles."_ His former Student admits after a bit.

He smirks, oh yes, both Hayato and Mukuro had been having fun with those. _"Fearful of your manhood, Pipsqueak Dino?"_ He asks.

Dino rolls his eyes, clearly dismissing that rumour as unbelievable. _"Not an unreasonable fear, after all, in regards to Takato, he can be better classified as the boy's mother more then the boy's father."_ Dino pales and crosses himself.

_"But he's... Oh gods... Ah..."_ Dino stutters over the mental images.

_"Born a male and considers himself to be one. The circumstances around that is why Takato Uyehara wasn't reborn under his old name of Tsunayoshi Sawada."_ Dino's eyes wide and he could pretty much guess what his former Student is experiencing.

_"My cute little brother was born to a Sunny Cloud this time around? How?"_ Dino finally asks with a bit of a whine. _"Why not to Nana?"_

_Why not indeed._ He muses to himself. _"Do you think without Iemitsu, Tsuna's wouldn't come to attention of the Vongola? The man Sealed a five year old Sky, as complete of a Seal as he could make it while leaving the child alive. Didn't try to talk sense into Iemitsu about training the child."_ He states. Oh, he can respect the Nono in may regards but it's clear that the man is a shit poor adopted parent.

"It's easy to picture it in my mind at least. Nana dying in her 'safe' home and baby son being stolen by a third party to be sold to the highest bidder. The guards either paid off or there's an engineered blind spot in the schedule." He muses.

_"There were rats in the Vongola back then and it didn't start when Iemitsu took his post as the Outside Advisor. This rot set in during Nono Vongola's reign."_ As loath as he is to admit it. He'd been loosely associated with Famiglia for years before he joined under Decimo Vongola or the more popular used Neo-Primo Vongola.

The Ring Battles that never should have happened like they had. The fact that Nono didn't trust his ability to shape Tsuna up into a fine Don stung. That the man rigged the battles and what kind of prescient it would set. The rallying cry behind which the Alliance could, validly, get behind.

While it did turn out that Xanxus did ended up with a very weak claim as they did use a Mist Technique to actually see his bloodline viva his mother's line and father's, it wasn't enough. Not when there were official documents of legitimate children to track down. After all, there's no documents listening said bastards as legitimate, even with this Mist technique proving that Blood relation.

Takato's leaving the matter up to Xanxus if he wants his family tree officially added into the Famiglia's records. After all, there's no question of Takato not winning. He's seen some of the videos of their rare tournaments. Yes, his more recently returned ones were still bringing themselves up to match those living in Japan, but they expanding their tools and were actually open to bouncing ideas from the others. They just need to spar with people who weren't as seasoned as their fellow Pride Members.

Like members of the Varia. To help the lower level mooks stay sharp while they can fight against those who will keep their mouths shut. It'll also motivate those mooks into polishing their own skills or spurring them in trying something new.

He wrenches his thoughts to study Dino. _"Nono is an old man. He's set in his ways and when he looks around him, do you think he really sees as it is or what he expects to see?"_ He states to Dino.

_"You think Nono should have step down in favour for one of his sons, like Kenji seems to think he should have?"_ Dino asks. _So that came up yesterday did it?_ He muses.

_"They were all over the age of twenty."_ He states soberly. _"His excuses for remaining on the throne were thin before Iemitsu became the External Advisor."_

_"Then why didn't the Alliance press the issue?!"_ Dino snaps. Eyes flaring a bit and he sighs.

_"Because there were members of the Alliance that benefitted from having the Nono remain in power."_ He states. _"We're criminals, Pipsqueak Dino. Bribery is part and parcel with our tactics."_

Dino jerks his head and his eyes becoming unfocused. Memories of Decimo Vongola's having to clean house in regards to the Alliance likely being recalled. _"Then they died."_

_"Security on them not really changing with as each died as it should have."_ He recalls reading what files the Nono and Iemitsu complied. _"Lal's trying but it's still a mess as she's dealing with rat nests along with individuals. She's working on her support base more often then not and the rats are smart enough to keep her occupied."_

She's also trying to keep her foster kid safe too boot. Basil might not be Iemitsu's son by Blood but the man in their last Life had used the young Rain as a surrogate son. Evidences that he's a good father, soothing his guilty conscious in regards to Tsuna.

Lal clearly cared about Basil and had snatched him up the moment they met in this Life. Becoming the Rain's parent and mentor. As for Basil, well, that's going to be Kenji's business once the younger learns who killed his master in this Life. It's up in the air how that will end, either with a forgiving Rain or a dead one, likely done after the Rain attacked him.

After all, Kenji has been stressing that when they fight, they need to remember that its kill or be killed. Only the Strong are skilled enough to grant mercy. And that mercy isn't always going to be welcomed by those foes. It's a lesson his is glad the Sunny Cloud had been trying to teach them.

How well that lesson is ingrained, well, they'll find out soon enough. Particularly as people are going to be testing this civilian raised boy, grown up among retirees or not. It wasn't in the heart of Italy thus he's untested, unblooded.

_"And she's not bothering to ask the Nono for help, because she suspects that his 'cleaning house' didn't get rid of all of them."_ Dino reflects passively.

_"Takato? He's really going to put his hat in the ring?"_ Dino asks after a bit.

_"Of course he is, you know you cute little brother. He'd do anything for his friends, for those he considers family."_ He admits fondly just a touch.

_"For people he's never even met in this Life?"_ Dino remarks. _"Who grow be the same people from before?"_

_"He's far too kind for his own good."_ He admits with a sigh. _"Which is why you'll be watching his back."_ Dino remarks and he scowls at his former Student.

_"Perhaps."_ He admits, tilting his fedora to hide his eyes. His own emotions over Takato are hard to pin down.

_"After all, Kenji's got no name or reputation. He's just a doctor to a bunch of dried up Mafiosi and free lancers. They can't respect that he just walked away at the 'beginning' of his career as a hit-man."_ Dino remarks and that startles him.

_"It's why those rumours are spreading, to create something for Kenji have attached to his name for when Takato steps forward."_ Dino reflects after a while and he mentally curses himself for not realizing that sooner. _"And, are we sure he...?"_

_"Dino."_ He states. _"It's what happened. Facts are thus a man physically transformed into a woman, did a risk Sun technique which resulted in said person being pregnant with a two month old fetus, and then give birth to the reincarnated Decimo."_

Dino just stares. _"Keep this up and I'll arrange for you to find out how it really feels to be a woman. Perhaps I should see if I know the theory well enough to do it myself?"_ That gets Dino shaking his head.

_"Nope, I'm good, I believe you."_ Dino says in a slightly higher pitched tone. _"Good. Now, do you want to sit down in the living room for a while? Enma could use the company."_

Dino nods and misses the door knob twice before almost stumbling out of the room. He says sitting there, on the bed, reflecting on what Dino had said and how, it helped settle some things in prospective. Looking down at Leon who's crawled down his arm, he asks the chameleon, _"You think I should have warned him that Xanxus will be attending today?"_

Leon doesn't say anything and he scratches under the little lizard's chin. "You are right, it's more of a surprise this way."

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

It's a minor scream that wakes him and then there's a loud VOI! It takes him seconds to remember where he is and sits up to find Xanxus and more of his Officers by the front door while Dino is on the smaller couch. The dog isn't on the floor before the couch and seems to be checking out the new arrivals.

Uyehara-san seems unruffled by the going ons and it takes him a few seconds to notice some non-Varia faces. "Hey Enma, didn't expect to see you here today." Hayato says walking over while Lambo is busy petting and scratching the dog'

"Dino." The Storm greets the first Student of Reborn. "Fuuta. Hayato, Lambo. Mukuro and, the names escape me." He greets them before gazing at the two who stand near by Mukuro. The kid grins before heading off after glancing at Lambo and the dog before heading up stairs.

He sits up and takes his feet from the couch, rather embarrassed that his shoes were still on. "Chikusa and Ken." Mukuro says while looking rather bemused, the pair nod their greeting before heading off, likely the backyard along with the Varia.

Hayato joins him on the couch while Mukuro moves to claim a lazy boy chair that's off to his left. Noticing the lack of a crimson eye with the Mist along with lacking the pale skin from not getting enough sun. "How was the trip?" Dino asks.

"Quick." Is the reply with a ghost of a grin. He notices that Mukuro also sports something similar.

"So, followed Reborn here for this Birthday I see." Mukuro observes. "Ended up a party favour in return." Dino remarks dryly.

Mukuro hums while Hayato just leans back on the couch. "Have you met Takato yet?" Hayato asks.

"Just arrived yesterday in Namimori. Spoke with Kenji who invited me over tonight." The Sky says. "Wanted to meet the source of the rumours myself."

"Rumours?" He asks and Hayato replies, "We've been trying to make the Vongola Famiglia aware of the Yakuzas have claimed Namimori as theirs."

"The bonus being?" Dino asks in a dry tone. "Why, by building Kenji up to step into the vacant post of repressing Vongola here in Japan. For clearly it'll be a waste of personnel to send someone all the way east when they could just hire a local, someone who's already doing it?" Mukuro says silkily.

"Which helps by putting some protections in place for when Takato steps in to challenge the current heir apparent during the upcoming Ring Battles." Dino notes and he is rather startled at the fact that Tsuna's reincarnation is actually going to do that willingly.

"Why would he? They don't even know about him, do they?" He asks and Hayato replies, "The rumours of Iemitsu having a bastard before he got married have been around for years and the black market sperm have yielded Takato a few half siblings from Iemitsu's genetic donation viva some sharp Sun sensing a money making opportunity goes to steal a dead man's balls, which someone had surgically already removed while still alive, and milking them for sperm for years." He chokes a bit on hearing that.

"Never mind the half sister from when Nana remarried." Mukuro remarks and he keeps his mouth close, listening while he processes what's being said.

"It's hard to disprove a rumour, even with lack of evidence backing it up." Dino muses. "And nobody's going to believe he's Iemitsu and Nana's kid. Plus, well, anyone who knew the timeline of Kenji's time among the Mafia don't recall him at all and Suns can delay bodily functions, some women have been known to drag out, I've found one such case where the pregnancy dragged on for two years." Hayato tells them.

"It's common knowledge among the retirees that Kenji arrived pregnant and he admitted to black widow on the man who got him pregnant." Mukuro explains. "That he was born a man."

_That's more then I needed to know about Uyehara-san._ He decides while looking at the three, it's clear that Dino's getting what's it. "And he's clearly a Sunny Cloud. And everyone knows how Clouds are about their Territories."

"So... Your going to imply that Iemitsu had Uyehara-san Cursed into a woman, raped her, then toss the 'her' into the gutter unknowingly pregnant and 'she' vowed revenge again him once 'she' figured out how to delay this pregnancy? Killed him and finally allowed the kid to be born?" He summarizes after all, if Curses could turn grown men into people the size of babies why not a man into a woman?

It makes a better story then Kenji turning himself into a woman to kill Iemitsu and somehow ending up pregnant with Iemitsu and Nana's kid. They look at him with Mukuro clearly pleased with the story he created based off of hearing all this the first time. Dino looks startled then slowly nodding and Hayato grins lazily, as if he'd known all along he'd come to that conclusion.

"Might need to imply he couldn't abort any kids either, to help fuel the Curse on him." Dino adds and Hayato remarks, "Good point." While Mukuro chuckles.

It's not long after that more people arrive, all of them looking far different then he last Saw them. The teen with brown hair who's taking the key out, well, yea, that could only be the reincarnated Decimo Vongola, only there's more then just his height that is different. "Hey Dino. Enma, we weren't expecting you until tomorrow."

"Where's your Guardians?" Ryohei asks while I-pin races off up the stairs. They were each in their school uniforms.

Oh yea, he ran off without telling them why or to where. "Ah, can I borrow a phone? I should call them." He admits and Takashi gently tosses his own.

"Problems?" Takato asks curiously, closing the door behind them, locking it. The others were already heading for the stairs after nodding to those in the living room.

"I just, ah, you know, wanting to prove I don't need keepers." He admits and Takato replies, "I see."

"He was just standing there, I thought he was here for Reborn's Party." Dino admits. "Free food." He says with a shrug and Hayato snorts on hearing that.

"Yea, that'll do it. We are at that age after all." The reincarnated Sky admits with a touch of humour which he returns.

He causes the screen to light up and goes for the phone, typing in Adelheid's number then pauses before excusing himself, heading for the kitchen. Taking a deep calming breath, he presses the connect. It rings for twice before his Glacier Guardian snaps icily, "If this isn't you, Enma, I am hanging up."

He chuckles nervously. "Ah, hey, Adelheid-chan. Yea, it's me."

"Where are you?" She asks in a frosty tone. "Well, you recall that address on that invitation? I kind of thought I'd check it out, well, they're celebrating another guy's Birthday and they just kind of, ah, thought I was there for that."

"We weren't attending that." Adelheid states and he chuckles slightly, wondering why they left Simon Island in the first place if they weren't going to attend. "Well, I think we should, after all, it's going to be Decimo Vongola's fifteenth birthday after all."

"As in Sawada Tsunayoshi's Birthday, only he's been reincarnate as Uyehara Takato who's kind of planning his return to being Don of that Famiglia." He drops Takato's old name and he is pretty sure, that struck a cord, after all, it worked with him.

"You..." Adelheid just makes a serious of noises of frustration and then she roars at the others, telling them they're headed to Namimori. "You better be in one piece." The call ends and he sighs.

"Trouble?" Takashi asks as the teen walk over. He hands the phone back and replies, "Only the kind I set myself up for."

"Ah yes, well, we Guardians do tend to worry about the tiniest things." The Rain remarks with a slight smile. "How's things with the Simon Famiglia?"

"Well, the massacre didn't happen as it did last time." He admits. "So, I'm not an orphan and... my little sister Mami is still alive."

"That's good, that's something to be thankful for, right?" Takashi asks and he nods as he says, "Yea but, well, the Famiglia's been in a state of waiting for the other shoe to drop since then. It's tiring and smothering."

"Well, the other shoe just dropped, didn't it?" Takashi muses and he is startled before grinning, nodding in agreement, "That's true. Maybe we'll finally move on from consistency being on the watch for danger."

"Good luck with that, it'll be kind of hard, given Daemon isn't going to just show up and confess to being responsible for the whole harrying of the Simon Famiglia." Takashi remarks and he gives the Rain a flat look. "Ruin my hopes, why don't ya."

"We'll help you guys figure something out. We're friends after all, it's what friends do." Takashi says.

They exchange grins before Takashi asks, "So... Have you taken a look at the wall of photos? You know that Uyehara-san gave birth do Takato, right?"

"Ah, yea, it was mentioned." He admits before adding, "And no, I haven't. I took a nap on the couch due to the return of my last Life's memories."

Takashi beckons him to follow and it's a fairly touching series of photos that show Takato's Life through the years. "So, what did Uyehara-san dress up in that one?" He asks after a while. "Ah, a Shinigami from the anime Bleach."

"And the group one?" He inquires again. "We decided on Final Fantasy character as a group theme. Did you want me to tell you who's who?" Takashi asks.

"Ah, no, they'd likely just go over my head." He admits and Takashi nods in understanding. "There's going to be another costume party this month?" He asks.

"Yip. We're trying to have it as an annual event." Takashi admits and then, Fuuta, I-pin, and Lambo with Guilmon at their heels coming down the stairs, talking away in a language he doesn't know while they greet them both before setting themselves in the living room, Fuuta taking the remote.

Without a word, they head for the backyard, to join the festivities out there, leaving the kids and dog along to what TV. "You know, I'm an older brother now too?" Takashi says as they walk out of the door, not moving from the porch.

"So, she's still alive in this Life?" He asks and the Rain hums in agreement. "Yea, my baby brother, his name is Minato and he's going to be two soon." He had wondered about the woman and whether or not Yamamoto-san remarried. He just didn't want to ask.

It's not long before they drift off to go talk with others. Deciding to get to know the others better. Fon shows up with their dinner order.

He got into a conversation with Takato and Belphegor, Bel for short, about the Sky's e-sports career when Kyoya arrives with his Guardians, they're coming through from the gate and they rush in his direction. Just looking at the bring up mixed emotions but guilt for the worry clear in their eyes.

"Enma-kun!" The other two step back and he's engulfed in a hug, then passed around among his Guardians. Each checking him over to be sure he's find before encircling him, which just causes him to sigh.

Clearly expecting the guests to suddenly attack him, even though he's been here for some hours now. Kyoya watches on before heading off to get something to eat. "You guys, just go get something to eat and mingle, please. We're safe here, were among friends." He tells them.

"No, we are, Takato's the reincarnation of Tsunayoshi. Daemon Spade didn't kill our parents and the rest in this Life." He tells them calmly and over their objections. "We don't have to worry about Vongola Famiglia, never did, just the Primo's Mist."

The others flinch and they try to fight their attention on the here and now as their memories try to come forward. "It could be a Mist trick!" Koyo snaps but uncertainty clear on his face.

"Sorry but I get them into the house. I'd like to hear more later." He says to Takato and Bel does his creepy laugh.

"Just send the kids out." Takato says and he nods, herding his Guardians into the house, they clearly weren't use to dealing with him being firm and confident. Then again, there's no reason for him to be in this one.

He wonders where they left his little sister and the others who came with them on this, excursion to Japan from Simon Island. Then again, it's clear that his Guardians thought they were entering into combat situation.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"So? I know it's not the usual kind of party that you prefer, what with the territory up, but was is decent enough?" Takato asks him as they watch the last party guests walk off, returning home or hotel rooms for the night.

"I expect next year's to make it up to me for the lack of chaos of this one, Gogglehead." He says and showing that he did do his research on the origin of said names, it's yielded **two** nicknames for his former Student. Takato's eyes widening and mutters of 'of course he'd research it' were well worth it.

"Well, next year will be in Italy then, Mukuro's Gate Room might suit as the party location." Takato says and wasn't that an interesting idea? Enchanting items to anchor Portals. It sure kept people from noticing, particularly since both were under secure wards and layered territories.

It's how Xanxus headed back to the Varia to help his Guardians with regaining their memories and then return. Dino would likely be visiting viva the Gate in the future, its' just that he'll need to return home via air plane. His future visits will be only for a few hours, although he'll have to keep in mind the hour differences.

"So... what's this I hear of you being on an e-sports team?" He asks as he moves onto Takato's shoulder from the fence. Takato heads for the back porch, Mist illusions finished cleaning up the backyard.

"Well, I was eight and I got an in game message due to my in game score..." Takato begins to tell how it began while entering the house.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"So, Xanxus seems to have some lingering interest in you." Fon muses lightly as they watch his son tear strips out of Don Vongola over the issue of Xanxus being adopted instead of the Ninth's bastard or one of his sons before the Alliance Council. Mukuro is supplying the connection feed while Chrome the view point.

It's clear his son's old allies from his previous Life are enjoying the shredding Takato is doing to Ninth's so call vaulted dignity and honour, well, as much as a Don of a Famiglia is suppose to have at any rate. The Simon Famiglia were step out of the shadows of history, supporting Takato's position as old allies of the Primo gives him some backing.

He's not sure how Enma managed to get elevated to his position as Don of his Famiglia in under a month, then again, perhaps solving the puzzle they had last Life helped convince his father and the older generation. Dino's been using the documents that the Italian Guardians, as they've come to be called with those living in Namimori being the Japanese Guardians. It's more of an acknowledgement that the Italian ones were more focus in Intel while the Japanese ones are highly combat focused.

"I think it's going to pass soon enough." He tells Fon. "I'm not interested in a career as an assassin." The Bond they share, he can feel his Guardian's pleasure upon hearing that.

These days his Sky Flames aren't fire sparks but actual Flames that dance between his Cloud and Sun. Having a Bond clearly strengthening his third or perhaps pulling out of its hiding sport. "Hopefully another will catch his eyes sooner then later." Fon states.

Their conversation pauses as they watch Nono try a Flame tactic to reassert himself as the dominate presence in the room which his son dispels with just a minor pulse of his own Flames. The sour look on the elderly man's face is one that's likely already got captured by Coronello's camera, Reborn phoned the sniper up with a job offer and upon hearing the details, accepted, using vacation time so it from Mafia Land.

The other Dons on the other hand, particularly the neutral ones are now sending poison looks at Don Vongola for the trick. Clearly not likely that the man just tried to inflict his Will on everyone within the room. The meeting ends with agreed testing of Takato's blood against that of Sawada Iemitsu, to be done by a third Famiglia that will be chosen at a later date next week but allowing Takato to carry the half rings the Ninth had given to Xanxus.

"Oh, someone's in trouble." Skull sings out. The others snicker in reply.

They know Dino plans to push forward the Giglio Nero Famiglia as they were well known for their neutrality among the Italian Mafia Famiglia, it's one most will approve of. The only connection Takato has with said Famiglia is Yuni, who showed up for Takato's Birthday last month with Skull and Verde in tow.

Although, Verde, has taken up residence at his office building and is more then happy to help him with the basement garden in exchange to no rent. He's had Chrome and Mukuro modify the basement to now include a lab for the Lightning Arcobaleno to use with the Mist security ensuring that the lab is off limits from the garden. Irie Shoichi and one of the newest resident of Namimori, Spanner, are frequent visitors and aides of Verde.

"Nono should have made better use of that research if he wanted to avoid this. Put forth someone with an Official claim then the adopted son." Verde remarks as the man is busy with his tablet, not really watching the feed in the conference room's TV.

"If he didn't think nothing of rigging it in favour of Tsuna back then, then he most certainly will for this one." Shoichi muses thoughtfully. "He's old and finally feeling his age."

"Well, that's what we want, right?" Skull remarks as the TV feed fades. "For them to actually review the Don Vongola's actions since his sons began dying?"

"Seems like it, then again, I'm not one for politics." He admits while his Storm Guardian hums thoughtfully. "It's a world filled with words and very little substance."

"Yet, you've navigated that company of yours just fine." Fon muses from his right shoulder while Lichi resting on his left shoulder, grooming his hair. "Particularly given what your career."

"Well that's enough of that." Verde starts with a grumble. "I've had my fill of Soap Opera Drama for the day, I best get back to the lab."

The Curse scientist remarks and Shoichi stands, saying, "I think my mom said something about bringing over a meal..." He nods, asking, "Did you want me to send her down or call you up?"

"The latter please." Shoichi says and he promises to do so. As the two head for the lab, he glances over at Spanner, the teen is fast asleep on the table and Skull is gently poking the teenage mechanic.

"So? You think he won a few over to his side?" Fon asks and he snorts, replying, "He's sparked interest, yes, and they'll start searching for anything about the Simon Famiglia, which means they'll be splitting their focus on Takato and the Simon Famiglia."

"What time is it?" Skull asks, breaking the discussion between Fon and himself. "Pretty late, given what time that meeting started at in Italy." He admits and Fon leaps onto the table, allowing him to get to this feet.

"Might as well move him to the couch." He remarks as he studies the young teen. "Heading back to the house?" He asks the two as he gently carries Spanner bridle style in his arms, the teen not waking at all.

Lichi climbs down from his shoulder and then leaps onto the table, heading for Fon's head. "I think so. Although the house is pretty empty." I-pin is off in Italy with the others, spending time with Lambo and Fuuta, they'll be forwarding her homework for her classes along with handing it in.

"Might as well keep Fon company." Skull states as the door opens and Fon holds it open for him to walk through. "Oodako's tank is there after all." Said animal companion comes climbing down the wall, shrinking to fit on Skull's back with ease.

He hums soon enough, Fon and Skull head to the house while he lays Spanner on the couch. It's not long before he covers the teen with a blanket before leaving the room. He heads for the 'staff'' room and flips on the security camera for the front door to watch for one Irie Tomoko likely showing up to deliver breakfast in a few hours.

He uses the machine to create himself a mug of coffee and retrieving the lap top. His work load is going to be heavy for the next little while as he's going be starting an online story to begin selling products from the retirees are crafting. Mukuro, Chrome, and Kyoya have been testing creating a digital territory this past year, which they'll see if they can't use to keep civilians from finding this store.

He's rather busy using his Flames to stimulate his learning laws about this kind of online story, as in every country's laws instead of just Japan and Italy ones. So, the knock on the wall startles him and looks up, he might be sporting a confused look or annoyed as he spies Tsuyoshi standing by the door way. It takes him a few seconds to connect the dots and allowing his Flames to fade.

"Sorry, Tsuyoshi, I was doing research over what governs online stores." He says as he moves to stand from his chair. The restaurant owner's eyes flash in amusement upon hearing that.

"How'd it go?" Tsuyoshi asks as he enters more into the 'staff' room. Worry clearly clinging about the older man's frame and being.

"Takato torn stripes out of Don Vongola about putting Xanxus forward when the Varia Boss isn't actually the bastard son or even grandson, even slapped down the lab results they had done along with the ones Nono had done himself years ago." He tells the Rain User.

"Then declared himself a son of Iemitsu and Xanxus gave him the half rings, believing Takato's claims, that he's a Sky and of the Blood." He continues. "It ended with the Dons wanting tests run between Takato and Iemitsu. Nono tried to use his Sky Flames and Takato used his own to clear the room of them, confirming his claim of being a Sky along with setting the room against Don Vongola."

That news seems to sooth the older Rain's worry for now. "The Alliance Dons will also be occupied with finding information about the Simon Famiglia. So their focus will be split, even without the whole being pissed at Don Vongola for keeping silent about Xanxus' adoption, having allowed him to use the Famiglia name."

"It might take years before it sinks in. If it ever does, he's had years to condition everyone around him, which is means everyone's guard has been down for some time." He muses after all, the effects of his son's effects on the local birds persists to this day, the older ones teaching the younger ones, even if his son isn't using Sky Flames now when it comes to feeding them.

That's a terrifying on so many levels if one replaces birds with humans. It's something Mafiosi seem to instinctual know about Skies, yet, they can't help themselves from approaching them. Seeking that feeling of not being along that the Bond grants between a Sky and their Guardian.

His Bonding with Fon very much did seem to come out of nowhere for everyone. After all, they hadn't known he had a Sky third nor did he think it mattered with two far stronger Flames. Nor did he think of himself as a Sky either, yet proof is in the Bond, now, isn't it?

"Politics in the Mafia is very cut throat." Tsuyoshi remarks with a hint of sourness. "It's call the organized _crime_ for a reason."

"Might equals right." He agrees. "But, they aren't inexperienced in that world. The caution of adult Mafiosi from last time clearly gave them some breathing room at times and in this one, they've had years to observe Mafia World while pulling their experiences from last time to use."

"Lions wearing the pelts of sheep." Tsuyoshi admits, it seems Kyoya's referencing them as a Pride has robbed off. "But they had Nono backing them, that opened doors last time."

"And closed some at the same time." He remarks. "They are very much aware of the changes of this Life. It's hard to ignore it when one of their number sports a different Name."

"I just wish..." Tsuyoshi trails off and his eyes soften, yea, it's an old issue. "Tsuna... Takato... Whatever child was meant to be born between Iemitsu and Nana, their hour is meant to be written upon that ring. Neo-Primo kind of says it all, in its own way. Yet, there could be worlds where Takashi isn't the Rain in that child's Sky same with the others, it's just that, major changed would be needed to make it happen."

"Where Don Vongola had been the one to die and one of his sons taking the throne." Tsuyoshi adds. He nods, "I'm just glad Takato got the Mare Rings before his Birthday last month. I really don't think how I would deal with a parallel version named Tsuna."

"Kind of surprised he didn't show for the party." Tsuyoshi muses as the Yamamotos came for Takato's party as they known his son better then Reborn. Little Minato spent most of the night trotting after Guilmon, to the dog's clear amusement.

"Likely for the best, some of them still hold him responsible for the whole not stressing Change being the key word. You know, trying to get them to listen to him instead of just hearing him." He admits with a sigh and Tsuyoshi gets a bemuse smile. "They still chose to go through with it."

"The power of a Wounded Sky, I would assume. If they don't kill the Sky, they end up feeling all paternal and maternal in regards to said Sky. The feeling of this Sky NEEDING them." He muses and Tsuyoshi winces at the thought. "I wouldn't be surprised if Reborn hadn't felt a bit adrift for a bit when his memories returned."

"Reborn? Adrift?" Tsuyoshi remarks and he replies, "Tsuna needed a male role model in his life and Reborn stayed after the job ended, officially joined the Vongola."

"The man does come across as possessive when it comes to what he believe his." Tsuyoshi admits. "From the stories I've heard from my son."

"Tsuna clearly needed a father." He remarks. "And Reborn claimed him as belonging to him, so, he fit into the slot either unknowingly or knowingly."

"Never mind the Chaos Neo-Primo's Famiglia ended up providing." Tsuyoshi remarks and he nods. "Yea, I get that he loves the randomness it can cause." He admits.

A comfortable silence hangs between them before Tsuyoshi checks the clock. "I best be going, I have a sushi bar to work tomorrow." The father of Takashi says.

"Night." He says and the man heads out of the 'staff' room. He walks back over, picking up his mug of coffee, using his Flames to re-heat it. He sips it and then sits down once more, glancing at the TV of the front entrance for a bit, drinking his cup before continuing with his previous, self appointed task.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Nono is trying to rush the man through a crash course of Zero Point Breakthrough." Mukuro says in Italian, they've all agreed to keep to the language while in Italy. It helps remind the Japanese Guardians of the task at hand.

"Why aren't we using his name? He has one, right?" Ryohei asks curiously.

"Its tradition." Mukuro remarks with a bit of sniff of distain at the idea of using the name. "If one goes by crime novels, then, yes, yes it is." Hayato remarks with a roll of his eyes.

"Still, we really should, he's Takato's distant relative." Takashi remarks. "We've always used people's names before."

"But he's not really that impressive. Before this, he was just so average." Mukuro reminds them. "He only started using his Flames in a Useful manner when Nono found him."

"He went Active when he was sixteen." He notes. "Pascal Caputo, son of Parry Caputo and Kachina Caputo, formerly Greco, father is second cousin to the current Don of the Grassi Famiglia. A minor Famiglia, the Blood connection comes from a daughter of the Sei's with an official mistress. Padma, the woman's name, was not Active so no Flame Type recorded."

A few of his Guardians pout at him saying that out loud, clearly preferring to treat this like a crime drama then the seriousness that it likely did warrant. "No Guardians listed before his being brought in as the Decimo candidate. Is bi in his preferences according to Mukuro." Chrome reads out and everyone turns to regard Mukuro.

After a few seconds, he pipes in, "You haven't mentioned much about the Guardians Nono arranged for Pascal. Any idea what preference they were for?"

"Nono did his best to get those with Guardian training but he's allowed Alliance Famiglia add some of theirs to the mix. Given the infusion of Nono's Flames throughout the Iron Fort, it's hard to pick out which among the group Pascal is drawn too." Mukuro admits.

"Which means that Nono just might put forward his picks from those trained instead of which ones actually click." Hayato remarks sourly. In a way, that's kind of what happened with his Lightning and Storm, both had been picked out and approved by Iemitsu and Nono, tasking Reborn with introducing the two to him.

"And we have no idea of what Nono thinks are good fits for Pascal or reflecting his choices onto Pascal." Chrome muses. "What numbers are we looking at in regards to the candidates?" Ryohei asks.

"Labelled by their primaries, there are thirteen Suns, eleven Storms, nine Lightnings, seven Mists, seven Rains, and three Clouds." Mukuro reports. "Want the numbers concerning Guardian training?"

"No, those who likely never had it have likely got some lessons by now." Hayato states with Takashi nodding in agreement. "Nor do we need a listing of gender."

"Not after Mukuro's investigation into Pascal's preferences." Ryohei agrees with a hint of a teasing grin and the Mist fakes an offended expression. "Thank you for helping to cut down on what to talk about." Ryohei says to his fellow Guardian and Mukuro nods his head in acceptance of the thanks.

"So... Are we going to draw this out or just slaughter them with four battles?" Lambo asks as he grabs a cookie from the dessert tray Mukuro cooked using ingredients his dad sent over for the week.

Everyone turns to regard their youngest brother and then, as one, they all pretty much say, "Nay." Kyoya nodding approvingly of this collective decision.

Reborn is out having dinner with Dino. Chikusa and Ken busy getting out of the house for the night. Fuuta and I-pin seem to be absorbed in their respective phones, listening in, they know they can chip in at any point along with being welcome to the snacks. Guilmon's resting near Fuuta and I-pin.

He leans back a bit, watching as his brothers and sister get off topic, feeling the Bonds he shares with not just his Guardians and the Partnership with Guilmon but there minor Bonds now, all coming from his wide array of friends. He can also feel the seemingly frail one between his dad and himself, which he feels hesitant to really touch it for it feels like it could break with the slightest pressure.

_Wonder if it started out like that between them? Like it could snap at any moment?_ He wonders. Perhaps that's just the nature of a Sky Flame that occupy a ranking below secondary?

"Ok, now that you've all got that out of your systems." He says dry as more then a few of this Guardians have moved from verbally sniping to physically wrestling, he waited until they had deadlocks in their respective expressions of their opinions before speaking.

Yea, it still happens, just because they feel far more secure in this Life doesn't mean that they don't get physical with one another. It's just how they are, he's just thankful that they got to the point where that once it happens once, that they get it out of their system and just settle for verbal sniping. He accepts them as they are as they have accepted him.

_It's the whole acting like a 'proper' Sky that I'm going to have trouble with._ He reflects as the others take time untangling themselves and straightening their cloths. _The whole Lord and Knight system... Yea, that's going to be so grinding._

After all, his dad done his best to install a very different set of morals and thinking that is common place in the underworld. _And he succeeded._ He admits.

"The Nono having the Cervello as the judges?" Takashi asks once everyone is seated. Yea, that's a bit of a mix reactions among them, given that the Cervello ended up working for Byakuran in that, well, Future that Never Happened.

Which reminds him of his meeting with Byakuran back in October. Byakuran did hand over the Mare Rings at the end, most of the visit spent with his fellow Sky talking about getting into game development and his opinion of the e-sports scene that's developing at the world at large. It doesn't surprise him much that the other had seen through the Mist illusions he's used during his time at e-sports meets, when he had to make physical appearances.

"I'm more interested in the order of the Ring Battles then who's organizing. It would be nice to know what expect at the battle site." Hayato says.

"Perhaps it'll happen during the day instead of night." Chrome muses. "As long as the location is in secluded location."

"We'll know come the meeting tomorrow." He reflects. "Hopefully, the Ring Battles will happen in December instead of January. I would like to finish my project concerning the Tri-ni-set sooner rather then later."

He glances toward Kyoya. _'Kyoya-senpai?'_ After all, they haven't returned to Namimori, knowing that they'd have Mists scrying for them in Italy and they kind of have to allow them to get something to keep them from trying to steal into their current head quarters or having people actually try to start tailing them.

Instead of replying, Kyoya pulls some of his Sky Flames to check for himself. "So... Who's up for watching a movie before bed?" He asks once he allows a steady flow enter into his Bond with Kyoya, doing his best to make his Cloud feel more at home.

Everyone agrees that's a good idea, a few sending concerned looks towards Kyoya, sensing his Flames curling comfortably around the young man. He hangs back, allowing the others to exit out first and grabbing the tray along with drinks. Kyoya follows him as he takes it into the kitchen.

Kyoya stands near as he's putting the remaining snacks onto a smaller plate and his Guardian grabs the portable colder that has some drinks. Once the plate is on the table and the cooler near one of the others, Kyoya moved to sit near a window and he sticks close to his Cloud Guardian's side with Guilmon doing the same with him, with him offering as much support as he could given how long it's been since Kyoya's patrolled Namimori, only that gave him an idea.

Taking out his phone, he texts dad and once his dad is awake enough to read the request, he replies back and again once he's dress. He starts the video chat before handing the phone to Kyoya. It takes a moment for Kyoya to realize what's going on with the screen and tension drains. His dad is moving around Namimori, giving his Cloud the feeling of patrolling his Territory.

Though now, he wished he'd thought of that little idea sooner. Then again, it just seems that it struck Kyoya at some point today, if he's reading his Cloud's Flames right. The others relax, sensing that Kyoya's mood has lightened and get into the mood to tease one another as they watch Disney's Frozen in Italian.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

While it's not the same, it's better then nothing. That his Sky managed to get the Adult Carnivore to do this also shows his concerned. It's rather touching that the Adult Carnivore has paid attention to his nightly patrols and how they vary depending on the season touched him as well. _Like father like son._

Using his Flames, he controls the zoom function to take whenever the Adult Carnivore stops at his usual spots, slowly moving the phone around for just the right amount of time before heading off once more. His Sky's Flames continue to curl within his own, doing their best to give him a sense of Home.

The Adult Carnivore even does get involved in spooking the herbivores from their usual haunts. He smirks as he uses his Flames to hear their departing cries near his own ears, knowing that the others were busy watching a movie.

The soothing sounds of Namimori almost lure him to sleep.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

He ends Kyoya's usual patrol at his house. He waits until the video call ends and his son texts him. Thanking him for his help.

He just sends a smiling emoji and a thumbs up. With that, he stifles a yawn as he heads back home. As he enters, he finds Fon waiting for him.

"Kyoya?" His Storm asks and he nods. "Yea, I got a text asking me to have a video call and patrol Namimori in your nephew style. I felt his Flames controlling the camera."

"I'm surprised he lasted this long." Fon remarks and he nods in agreement. "Well, I'm sure he'll figure out a way to give him a better experience the next time I'm asking to do this."

"You don't mind?" Fon asks and he snorts, shaking his head, "No, it's for a good cause and you have to wonder if they weren't dragging this Ring Battle date just to torture him."

"Petty tactics." His Guardian states darkly. "Effective tactics though." He points out.

The Cursed martial artiest takes a deep breath and he can feel Fon releasing his darker emotions from his being. "Tea?"

"Sure, I doubt I'll be able to fall back to sleep right now." He says, walking over to grab himself a tea cup for himself. Joining Fon at the table with Lichi pouring some into his tea cup.

"It helped me too, you know? Feeling Kyoya's Flames for a bit." He tells his Bonded with a slight smile.

"You would have liked it better if it had been Takato's." Fon adds and he hums. He reaches inwards and seeks the small connection that leads to his son.

"Once this is over..." Fon muses. "Yea, once they've forced retirement on the Ninth and his Guardians, Xanxus will take the reigns, clearing house."

"In more ways then one." Fon adds. He hums as he sips his tea.

"Excited?" He asks after a period of silence. "I have every right to be. Once the final arrangements have been made."

"And just think, it'll be a good excuse to redecorate you room." He remarks and his Storm just gives him a bemused look.

"How's Skull and Spanner's efforts concerning the blimp?" Fon asks him. "Likely going to use Mist Flames to enlarge the space once it happens or he just might decide to start the project from scratch."

"Might be safer with the latter." The Storm remarks. He hums in agreement, after all, better safe then sorry and having everything be actual scale would be, as you never know when something might disrupt something you've come to take for granted.

"You have anything coming up?" He asks and Fon sighs, which answers that. "I'll be leaving in four days, it's a series of missions back to back. I should be back by mid December."

He gives his Guardian a slight smile, "I'll be sure to stock up on your favourite foods and teas in the mean time." Fon returns it with his own slight smile.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

The meeting starts with going over reviewing business from last time, along with updates. To everyone, it's clear that Don Vongola is doing this more to display his dominance then caring about proper conduct, after all, they were all hear to learn about the date and location of the Ring Battles, not discussing business as usual. So, his mind wanders a bit as the Nono is clearly milking each topic, giving him the chance to study the young Sky along with each of Takato's Guardians.

For some reason, he thought this whole event is wearing heavily on them, to say nothing for Enma and his Guardians. The Simon Famiglia were operating out of an mansion in the city while Takato's group have rented a fairly large farmstead in the country side. Likely due to it being out of the way along with defensible. It gives them free range to deal with any attacks with greater freedom then operating in a city and drawing Vindice attention.

He glances towards one of the Dons, who's now reporting the same old fact from before concerning the topic. Just with a new slant and the use of a thesaurus to swap out words. He is hardly the only one who's getting impatient with the continued sticking to reviewing old business with the barest updates. Updates they knew were too soon to happen given that such matters take time, at least a month, to show up and it's been, what, a week since they discussed this?

He resists the urge to rub his forehead or zooming out. Since he wasn't high up in the seniority ranking of the Alliance, he couldn't just stand up and demand for them to get on with it. It's unusual to have so many meetings in a month yet, the Ring Battles are an important matter.

The succession of the Vongola Famiglia is major news and this drama over the sudden appearance of a confirmed son of Iemitsu who's a Sky is making the rounds. The rumours concerning Kenji were adding fuel to keeping the interest of the Mafiosi from all walks of life. He's sure Reborn is enjoying the chaos of this whole situation and he's hinted at it last night when they had dinner.

A few of the more impatient Dons display it viva finger or foot tapping or holding their heads with a hand by their temple or leaning over the table. There's a few sneaking glances towards Takato's group. One of who actually decided to ask the current speaking to repeat a certain part.

_It's like they are expecting a bomb to go off._ He reflects as he notices it's not Takato they are focusing on, but Kyoya. It then dawns on him why once he mentally count the amount of time it's been since they arrived from Namimori.

After all the Ring Battle confirmation happened the second week of November and it's the last week of November. And of course, Kyoya is a Classical Cloud, who's been away from his Territory, with this likely being the longest he's been away from his Territory in this Life. _Well shit._

Yet, Kyoya seems as calm as ice. Seemingly not noticing or caring for the looks sent his way. He glances at Takato, yet finds that the young Sky the mask of polite interest. None of the others seem to be nervous either, no eyes darting towards the Cloud or fidgeting either.

He makes a note to ask about how Kyoya is managing himself, being away from Namimori for so long. Any previous excursions had likely been in Japan or just for a few hours in Italy viva Gate travel. Given that most of the Famiglia likely have their Mists scrying Takato and his Guardians as they were the ones who were the challengers and unknowns.

Finally they move onto the next bit of business after it feeling like hours when it's likely just been maybe less then half an hour. He is tempted to glance at the clock in the room, just to confirm it. His neighbour to his right lets out a defeated sigh upon glancing at the clock.

Again, it's just the same old information dressed up and different words being used. Only this time, two Dons how ask for certain parts repeated for their benefit or bring up previously discarded opinions. _This is torture..._ He thinks to himself as he continues to fight his urge to act out.

He is very tempted to bring out his cell just to occupy him mind. None of this is overly stimulating. It's hard to keep his look of polite interest and not glance around at his fellow Dons.

He is barely conscious by the time someone finally snaps. "Don Vongola, it is my understanding that these matters need time to any new updates to pan out, all I have heard it the same conclusions from last week's meeting. I, for one, would like that we actually get around to the discussion of the Ring Battles."

Most of the Dons murmur their agreement, dark looks sent towards the Nono for eating up their time with fuck all news. He gets the sense that Nono isn't satisfied with how they got to this point. A glance towards Takato and his Guardians have slight grins on their faces while Enma just looks relieved while some of his Guardians wake their fellows.

"Very well. If that is the wish of this Council." Don Vongola says in a mild manner. "I have spoken with the Cervello and they have agreed to judge the Ring Battles."

"The site will be emailed on December second and the whether will determine the order of the Ring Battles for the third. The battles will be taking place at night." Nono states. "I would like to remind everyone that attacks outside of the battles between the respective candidates and their Guardians are cause for a stint in Vendicare."

_I wonder how he pulled that one off?_ He wonders as it's decided that the meeting is at an end. Not that his cute little brother will do so nor did the other seem inclined to do so.

As he enters his car, he cries in alarm, "Reborn! What are you doing here?" His former teacher regards him with a frank expression while taking a sip from his coffee mug, likely an espresso.

"Are you unhappy to see me, Pipsqueak Dino?" The tiny Hit-Man asks. "I thought we enjoyed ourselves so much last night that we could spend sometime together today."

"I see?" He says in a doubtful way. Wondering if his former teacher wishes to comment on his behaviour during the meeting, after all, it's clear Reborn very much had listened in on the meeting.

"Not too bad, but then, the others didn't set the bar very high." Reborn comments as he does his belt. "Perhaps you should ask for lessons from the young Sky concerning pretending to pay attention."

"They did seem affected like the Simon Famiglia." He allows. It is rather surprising that Takato and more importantly his Guardians seem to have better masks then the Alliance Dons. "They were busy with watching Kyoya." He states with a frown and not overly pleased with the conclusion he reached about their interest.

"From my understanding, he was close to having an episode." Reborn states. "Takato did some quick thinking and asked for Kenji's aid help settle the issue." Adding softly, "They'll likely use the same solution again in a few days."

He feels his shoulder muscles relax, so the situation had been delayed it but that they have something to try and help manage the situation. It won't go away until Kyoya is back in his Territory though. "What did they come up with?"

"Video chat with Kenji patrolling Namimori." Reborn reports and it takes him a few seconds to smile at the very idea. "Clever." He approves of it, as it's clear that Kenji Uyehara is more then willing to help both his son and the young Cloud.

Another clear example of the differences between Kenji and Iemitsu. Sure, Iemitsu had cared, trying to keep his enemies from learning of his wife and kid by staying away yet at the same time, he just wasn't there for either. Money doesn't give your wife a warm body to sleep against at night or be there to give your son advice on how to deal with bullies attracted by Sky Attraction.

He hasn't spent a lot of time with Takato to feel comfortable with speaking about the changes in his home life. Then again, that wall of photos is very telling in its own, heart warming way. "It's... Telling, about their relationship if Kenji is willing to wake so early to do this favour for the pair."

"That Kenji is coming across as a better father then Iemitsu?" Reborn remarks and he sighs, nodding. "I can understand Iemitsu's reasoning and the distance. Then there had been his position as External Advisor compared to Kenji's practice."

"Kenji's got royalties coming in as well. Though, I get the feeling that money just isn't something Kenji feels he needs to worry about or a goal in and of itself." Reborn tells him. "It's ultimately, a differences in their priorities in their life as it's clear that Iemitsu's devotion was to Vongola and Nono, with his actual family near the bottom of the list."

"Kenji on the other hand, he just wanted to avenge his grandfather's murder and would have been at a loose ends if not for the pregnancy and deciding to keep the babe." Reborn continues. "So Takato always at the top of Kenji's priorities and he had few responsibilities or obligations."

"Still, couldn't Iemitsu could have tried calling more." He admits and hums in acknowledgement. Then again, who is he to judge? It's not like he's been a father yet, hell, he hasn't even found a woman he wants to date.

He yelps as he's face is hit with some water. Leon turns back into a lizard while Reborn asks, "Now then, what are your plans for lunch?" The meeting had been scheduled for nine and it's not a little after eleven, hard to believe they wasted two hours over the Nono's desire to show off his control over the Alliance, it's something to admire in its way yet annoying to be on the receiving end of.

"A business lunch at the local race track." He reminds his former teacher. "I have some potential buyers to wine and dine."

"And later?" Reborn asks and he sighs, getting the feeling his ex-teacher is about to hi-jack his schedule. "Getting ready to attend an artist official gallery opening followed with attending said gallery opening."

"The address and time?" Reborn asks with the hit-man having his cell out. He gives it and his former teacher notes it down before sending it. "You will have a date for that, Pipsqueak Dino." Reborn declares with a look of purse mischief and he winces but some part of him senses an opportunity for much teasing in the future.

**\- + = ) _ 0 _ ( = + -**

"I hope you haven't been waiting long." He turns to find a young woman sporting long red hair and purple eyes, a slight blush and nervous pose wearing a dress of suitable color and flatters her frame. Late teens if he's any judge of age.

"Nope, not very long. I'm Dino Chiavarone and I've been told I'm your date for the evening." He says, offering his hand, palm open and face up.

"I guess the same. You may refer to me as Rika Nonaka." Rika says with a slight blush as she takes his hand.

As he kisses the back of the hand, he struggles with the desire to see just who his date actually is. He's leaning towards Chrome given the shy demeanour, doubting Mukuro could pull it off as genuine as the younger Mist.

Plus his instincts confirm that this teen before him is a young woman. "Shall we?" He offers, gesturing for the door and Rika sighs softly, nodding, walking forward, pose and manner shedding the previous shyness.

He plays his part of being the prefect gentlemen, which earn him a sideways look with a touch of something before something seems to dawn on his date. A smile blooms across her face while she looks away, pushing back a stray strand of hair. He couldn't help but find that it adds to the beauty of his current date.

"So, what brings you to Italy?" He asks once they join the party, his invitation allowing them to enjoy. His lovely young date drawing a few eyes of party goers.

"Business, sadly." Rika admits with a sigh as he presents a wine glass to her upon taking a pair off a tray that a waiter is carrying around, offering to the guests. "But I'm sure you don't want to talk about it here nor is it the kind of place that we should speak of it."

"You are correct." He agrees. "Tonight isn't about business."

"No, it's about a mutual friend arranging this so that you ask questions in regards to your cute little brother." Rika explains before taking a tiny sip of wine, which he mimics. Yes, he's got questions concerning Takato and they haven't had the time to really reconnect.

"A touch of business with this, but, you and your friends handled yourselves quite well this morning." He compliments. "Particularly with the looks sent in your general vicinity."

Rika sighs softly and a slight frown graces her face for a few seconds before a much more neutral look settles upon her face. "It was trying, I will admit, but we've had received tips from one who could best Fon in his chosen field. It is more of a matter having our own contests, with the proper motivation of course."

"There are some who do love their physical signs of victory. We used a cheap trophy and everyone pitching in a few yen for a cash prize." Rika explains with a touch of humour.

"It sounds like quiet the experience and my respect for Mr Uyehara just went up a peg if he really can get Fon to speak before he." He muses and takes a slight sip, which Rika mimics.

They walk before one of the paintings, conversations continue on around them with soft music playing in the background. "So, why did you choose to attend this artist?" Rika asks curiously as they move onto the next painting on display.

"Well, I like what I've seen of his landscapes, his beaches in particular are beautiful." He remarks and after a bit of a dramatic pause, adds, "I find myself particular to a meadow scene entitled Welcoming the Day. I have a print at home, in my study actually."

"This current collection seem more focus on couples." Rika notes as she glances around the room. "Usually artist usually draw inspiration from their life. Perhaps he's found someone in his life?" She asks curiously and it takes him a second to realize that she's correct as they move on to the third.

"Well, it does seem that he's sticking close to his latest landlady." He reflects. "He has a tendency to move every six months, trying not to let his energies drain too much into his surroundings, his words I believe."

"Perhaps he's found a place worthwhile in investing now?" Rika muses with amusement. "It seems to set a certain mood, this current collection." Adds as she sips from her drink, which he mimics.

They do a circuit, making minor chit chat about the colors used along with discussion of the mood the paintings portrait. He's doing his best foot forward, doing his best to be decent company, which she seems to realize, often giving him slight smiles and with amusement clear in her currently purple eyes. It's not long before they are drawn into group conversations, listening to what's said along with saying a few points of their own.

Waiters and waitresses serve drinks and light snacks, exchanging their empty glasses for new plus taking a few selection of snacks. It takes him a while before he works up the nerve to continue with their more private conversation. "How are things between you and the others?"

"Ah, yea, I knew that was going to be coming up." Rika muses with a slight sigh. "I'd say things are better then, we have history that draws us together and we've been allowed to test each other without someone pushing us through crisis after crisis."

"And yourself?" He asks her and she admits, "Far better then it has any right to be. Yet, there's this nervousness that this shouldn't be my Life, that I stole someone's else chance at having a happy life." She moves a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Ah yes, that's something I guess crosses our minds once in a while." He agrees. "Yet, if not for us being capable of acting unknowingly on memories, would things have worked out like they have?"

"I see your point." Rika admits thoughtfully. "And yea, you're right, some things might have stayed the same simply due to the same people doing the same things as before for pretty much the same reasons. Only didn't due to unaware foreknowledge being acted upon."

"So, had enough for tonight?" He asks Rika, who hums in agreement. "I best be getting back."

"I'll walk you to your car then." They move to leave, putting down their glasses as they go. It's not long before a car drives up and Ken's seated in the driver seat.

"I had an enjoyable evening." He says and Rika glances at him with amusement in her eyes. "What?"

"You haven't figured it out or perhaps you just didn't want to see it." Rika muses before climbing into the back. "I had fun, either way. Night." The door closes and he steps away, the car drives off, leaving him to pounder that.

As his limbo comes around, he enters it without thinking. It finally strikes him by the time they arrive at his city lodging just who his 'date' had been and flushes in embarrassment. After all, didn't he have clear evidence that complete body gender changes were possible?

His phone receives a text from Reborn about having fun with his cute little sister tonight. He finds himself laughing about the whole thing for a while. Regardless of how everything happened, it still means there's a great deal of teasing material to use in the future along with spending some time with the younger Sky.

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"So, how did the 'date' go?" Chrome asks they are on the way back. "It went fine, I think he thought I was you though."

"And?" Chrome presses and, drawing a sigh. "I think I will be happy to get home and return to my correct gender. How is Guilmon, by the way?"

"He had plenty of fun with his hands, we spent a lot of time outside tossing the ball around. Some minor trouble with bodily functions but they got sorted quickly." Chrome answers.

"He's fast asleep right now, isn't he?" Chrome hums in agreement and their isn't much else to say, so the call ends. _Well, at least I wasn't spied on for the last few hours. That's something._

**\+ = + _ (V) _ + = +**

"Which battle is this one?" Kyoko asks as they relax in the conference room. "I think it's the Mist battle." Skull says as the arena is revealed, the location is a sports stadium and there's a number of Famiglia in attendance, clearly wanting to watch and perhaps place bets on who's going to win.

The feed is coming from a camera that's resting on someone's shoulder, likely hidden by a mixture of Flames to keep others from noticing it. It's hard to say who is carrying it. It's not long before they get an audio feed with Lambo whispering in Japanese, "Testing, testing, one, two, three."

He sends the text to his son's phone, telling them the audio is good. _"It's up."_ Takashi reports and Lambo doesn't repeat himself further.

"So, Mukuro's taking up his mantle of being the official Guardian or is it Chrome?" Hana asks from sitting between Kyoko and Haru.

Ending it here

**Author's Note:** This is my very first attempt at a Kateyou Hitman Reborn story! You can likely see a parellel with Stealing the Sky which is chapter 223 of my Random Thoughts story collection. This came first, fyi and it's rather unpolished and really, really, REALLY long! I doubt I'll be finishing this at all, so, enjoy it!


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